Haj: 6,487 selected for pilgrimage

KARIPUR: The draw of lots to select Haj pilgrims in government quota for the year 2012 was held at Haj House in Karipur on Monday. A total of 6,487 persons have been selected for the pilgrimage under Kerala quota. The committee has not received sufficient quota to meet the demand under the reserved categories this year. The reserved category falls in two groups -- persons above 70 years of age and persons who unsuccessfully bid for the pilgrimage in the past three years. A total of 3,120 applicants, above 70 years of age, have been directly chosen for the pilgrimage. The rest, 3,367 persons, were selected from the second category. There were 3,904 applications submitted to the Haj Committee under first category and 4,986 applications