Lucknow, April 23 -- The first batch of 427 Haj pilgrims departed on Wednesday morning from the Mohammad Ali Mian Haj House in Sarojininagar to Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport here, flagged off by minister of state for Minority Welfare, Muslim Waqf and Haj, Danish Azad Ansari. The flight left for its destination later in the evening.

In all, 17,065 pilgrims from Uttar Pradesh will undertake the pilgrimage this year. From Lucknow, 684 pilgrims will travel on 14 flights scheduled between April 22 and May 2 from the airport. Each pilgrim has paid Rs.3.69 lakh, including the Qurbani fee.

Ansari said that, for the first time, AI-enabled smart wristbands are being used to assist pilgrims. These devices will help track their locat...