Thousands of Bangladeshi pilgrims have suffered immensely due to massive mismanagement by private agencies that sent them to Mecca to perform Hajj this year. The situation was so bad that the unfortunate Hajis had to spend nights on the pavement, facing an acute crisis of food, medical treatment and guides.
 At least 1,200 Hajis have lodged written complaints with the Bangladesh Embassy in Saudi Arabia.  The Bangladesh government had spent a huge amount of money to recruit at least 112 local volunteers, including Indians and Bangladeshis. But the Hajis complained that they did not find any such volunteer to guide them.
 Golam Masih, Bangladesh's ambassador to Saudi Arabia, told The Independent that most of the Bangladeshi Hajis had to suffer immensely.
“I feel sorry for the awful condition of the general Hajis due to mismanagement of the Hajj agencies. I have received 1,200 written complaints against some private agencies. The situation is very bad. Many Hajis passed the night on pavements or the embassy balcony,” he said.
At least 10 private Hajj agencies are to blame for the mismanagement. These agencies abandoned the Hajis in Mecca and did not take care of them, he said.
“I’ve asked the Ministry of Religious Affairs in writing to blacklist the agencies responsible for such mismanagement,” he added.
The ambassador also said that the system of travel for Hajis needs to be changed to ensure that they do not suffer in a foreign land.
 He also suggested that the government should be stricter about issuing licence to private Hajj agencies.
 Regarding the recruitment of volunteers, Golam Masih said: “The government should take the matter seriously when such volunteers are recruited for money and fail to do their job. Otherwise, the situation will deteriorate in future.”
 He added that Hajis with lots of money did not face any problem, but those with a small budget had to pass through a great deal of suffering.
 The ambassador said he has sent a list of recommendations to the religious affairs ministry for providing better facilities to Bangladeshi Hajis.
 The religious affairs Minister, Motiur Rahman, said the government would take action against the Hajj agencies responsible for the mismanagement and their licence would be revoked if necessary.
 Bangladesh is one of the largest Hajj-performing countries in the world. This year, 1,01,758 Bangladeshi pilgrims, including 5,200 under government management, were expected to perform the holy Hajj as per the official data provided by the religious affairs ministry.
According to the Hajj package 2016, the minimum cost for a pilgrim was set at Tk. 3,04,903, which is an increase of Tk. 8,697 from the previous year.