Al-Nabaa Forum for Dialogue held an expanded panel discussion at the Rotana Hotel in Holy Karbala Governorate to discuss the security, service, and religious plan for the month of Muharram for the Hijri year (1440 AH). The event was attended by several MPs from the governorate, local government officials, directors of security, service, and religious departments, and relevant stakeholders to meet the needs and ensure the safety of the millions of pilgrims arriving from inside and outside the country to commemorate the rituals of this great pilgrimage, which is considered one of the most significant and largest pilgrimages witnessed by the governorate.
Participants discussed ways to elevate the provision of various services to arriving pilgrims during the month of Muharram, as well as the requirements and obstacles hindering their operations, particularly during the mass Ashura pilgrimage.
The Head of the forum, Ali Al-Talqani, told a reporter for Al-Nabaa News Agency: "Our program, convened to discuss the security, service, and religious plan for the month of Muharram, brought together decision-makers from the central and local governments on one hand, and civil society organizations, research centers, and citizens on the other, to address key issues aimed at delivering the best possible services to pilgrims arriving to mark the mass Ashura rituals."
He added: "The service plan specifically designated for the month of Muharram, during which millions of visitors arrive in the governorate from across the world, was discussed. Directors and representatives of government service departments outlined their operational plans and the main obstacles, submitting them to the central government via its parliamentary representation for the governorate to help overcome them. The challenges facing pilgrims were also addressed, and solutions were proposed."
For his part, the Chairman of the Higher Service Committee in the governorate and First Deputy Governor, Jassim Al-Fatlawi, stated that "the local government has for years called on the central government to establish an independent authority, modeled after the Hajj Commission, to manage the mass pilgrimages witnessed annually by Karbala, Najaf, Samarra, and Baghdad."
He added that "the pilgrimage of the tenth of Muharram is no longer a passing event that can be managed solely through local capabilities. Rather, millions of pilgrims from inside and outside Iraq converge on specific areas on designated days, requiring extraordinary efforts and comprehensive studies to improve state operations and channel government resources in proportion to the number of arrivals."
Separately, the Director of the Governorate's Sewage Directorate, Engineer Abeer Saleem Naser Al-Khafaji, stated that "the directorate has prepared an integrated action plan and will begin its implementation on the first day of the month of Muharram."
He added that "the plan covers several tracks, namely: network maintenance, station operation and maintenance, vehicle maintenance, and fuel provisioning, organized by administrative unit to ensure swift response and high-efficiency execution in service of the honored pilgrims."
He noted that "the implementation of these operational tracks within the administrative units will be carried out in coordination with the heads of the administrative units, each according to the geographic area covered by the plan."