Doha, May 27 (QNA) - The Information Systems Unit of the Qatari Hajj Mission announced the rollout of the 7th edition of the Murshid Al-Hajj guidance application, marking a significant milestone in leveraging cutting-edge technology to serve Qatar's pilgrims.

The app offers an integrated suite of guidance, health, and communication services that accompany the pilgrim throughout the various phases of the pilgrimage journey.

Head of the Information Systems Unit at the Qatari Hajj Mission, Ghanem Rashid Al Kubaisi, highlighted that the application serves as a 'smart digital companion' for pilgrims from Qatar. He noted that it constitutes the mission’s unwavering efforts to enhance services, indicating that the application is available on both the Apple App Store and Android platforms, ensuring broad accessibility for all pilgrims from the State of Qatar.

The application also benefits Arabic-speaking pilgrims of various nationalities by providing them with credible and reliable informational content, he outlined.

Al Kubaisi further pointed out that the application features a dedicated 'Pilgrim's Toolkit' section comprising instructional videos in Arabic, English, and sign language.

It offers smart communication services, including the option to share one’s live location and contact number with the mission's unit via WhatsApp or SMS, ensuring swift response and timely assistance in both emergency and non-emergency situations, he added.

Al Kubaisi stressed that the unit is highly committed to constantly working to update and advance the technological tools, in alignment with the mission's keenness to leverage all ways that ensure the pilgrims' safety and security during the pilgrimage season.

  As part of the on-ground preparations, the mission's Information Systems Unit has outfitted the mission’s key facilities in Saudi Arabia with a state-of-the-art internal network.

This infrastructure has been seamlessly integrated across all administrative, technical, and service units within the facilities, in pursuit of accelerating the operational workflows and fostering a diligent, advanced work atmosphere that ensures optimal service delivery to the pilgrims.

In addition, the mission intended to provide modern devices that track the traffic of the campaigns' buses while en route, with the aim of facilitating traffic flow between the holy sites.

It also connected these devices with the Communication Unit to provide prompt services to pilgrims so as to easily accomplish the pilgrimage rituals and simultaneously ensure their safety and provision of support when needed.

The application includes a comprehensive health guide developed in collaboration with the Ministry of Public Health and the Ministry of Endowments. It offers pre- and post-ritual health tips, safety and first aid instructions, as well as key recommendations for the pre-pilgrimage phase.

It also incorporates smart services that were specifically catered to pilgrims in order to facilitate their experience, mostly the circumambulation around the Kaaba 'Tawaf and Sa’i', along with an electronic rosary for reciting supplications.

It features an interactive map of the Grand Mosque displaying gate locations, ablution areas, and security offices, offering audio-visual educational videos that explain the Hajj rituals in a clear and accessible format.

Furthermore, the application provides essential information such as the Qibla direction, prayer times, and real-time weather updates. Pilgrims may also electronically generate and print an official Hajj completion certificate through the campaign management system linked to the Department of Hajj and Umrah Affairs.

To ensure prompt communication, the application likewise offers direct contact via the free hotline 132 in Qatar and 8003040444 inside Saudi Arabia, to serve the pilgrims from Qatar around the clock and provide the required support through the competent units escorting the Hajj mission. (QNA)