The Saudi Arabia’s Health Ministry has confirmed that the number of heat exhaustion and heatstroke injuries during the Hajj pilgrimage this year in a steady spiked.

In a statement, the Ministry said the number of injuries on Thursday reached 1,721, which was monitored by heat exhaustion centres in all hospitals in Mecca and the Holy Sites, the Saudi Gazette newspaper reported.

It has also come to the fore that another Hajj Pilgrim from Assam’s Karimganj district has collapsed due to heat amid scorching heat in the city of Mecca.

According to initial inputs received from sources, one Abul Hussain, a retired teacher from Badarpur locality in Karimganj breathes his last at Mecca on Thursday. However, the news of his death was received by his family members on Saturday.

The family accused the Karimganj Hajj Committee of informing them about his death lately.

In addition, another fatal incident was reported in Mecca where another retired teacher from Juria in Nagaon district, named Younis Ali, also died while performing his Hajj yatra.

Meanwhile, in another instance, a woman from Assam identified as Sultana Begum (Hajj Pilgrim) was reported missing from Mecca from June 28.

Sources informed that Sultana Begum was a resident of Hojai in Assam. She had gone to Hajj along with her husband Abdul Latif.

The concern authority in the Saudi Arabia Government was informed about the missing incident by the victim’s husband Abdul, however, her whereabouts have not been traced yet.

Later, several relatives/well-wishers of the victim in Assam commented on social media announcing that she had been rescued.