Srinagar, April 21 -- Private Hajj and Umrah service providers in Jammu and Kashmir are pinning hopes on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Saudi Arabia visit.

The service providers are currently facing uncertainty as a prolonged stalemate continues over the allocation of pilgrimage seats to local operators. With the visa process yet to open, industry players remain in the dark about their prospects for the 2025 pilgrimage season.

The impasse has left dozens of tour operators across the Union Territory in a state of anxiety, as they await clarity from both Indian and Saudi authorities.

Pertinently, Saudi Arabia has agreed to accommodate 10,000 Indian pilgrimsafter the union government engaged with the Kingdomover a slashed private Hajj quo...