In the earliest periods, there is no reliable information about which routes people from this region used to perform Hajj; it is generally assumed that before the invention of ships, pilgrims traveled on foot or rode camels and donkeys, but large-scale Hajj journeys began mainly through maritime routes using ships—something also reflected in written history. The overland route through northwestern India was long, difficult, and risky, whereas the Arabs were skilled traders who traveled across the world by sailing ships; on their journeys to and from East Asia, they would stop at the port of Chittagong, from where they moved to other regions and later came for trade as well—at that time, Chittagong port was one of the major international ports in the region. Therefore, it cannot be definitively said that Hajj journeys did not originate from here; rather, it is believed they may have started even before the conquest of Sindh (664–712 CE), although most written records are from the medieval period. Historian Abdul Haq Chowdhury, in his book “Chattogramer Samaj O Sangskritir Ruprekha,” Mentioned that during the Sultanate period (1340–1538 CE), pilgrims from Bengal and eastern India traveled by ship from the ports of Chittagong or Satgaon to Jeddah in Arabia, covering a distance of about 5,633 nautical miles. Evidence of such journeys is also found in the 1967 publication “Journal of the Bihar Research Society,” which mentions the Hajj of Hazrat Muzaffar Shah Balkhi and notes that he was sent by ship from Chittagong under the orders of Sultan Ghiyasuddin Azam Shah—indicating that Hajj travel was quite active during that era. During the Mughal period, Hajj voyages from Chittagong continued, but the port of Surat in Gujarat became more prominent and was known as “Bab-al-Makkah”; Emperor Akbar introduced state-sponsored Hajj arrangements, and after a security agreement with the Portuguese in 1575, regular Hajj fleets were dispatched. Although there is no evidence that Mughal emperors themselves performed Hajj, Gulbadan Begum became the first royal woman to undertake the pilgrimage; at times, Hajj was even used as a form of exile punishment. In the British period, Bombay (now Mumbai) port became the main center for Hajj journeys, causing Chittagong to lose its prominence; people from distant regions would travel to Bombay to board ships, and the entire journey could take six to seven months, with passengers often selected by lottery due to high demand—giving rise to the term “Bombay Haji.” Ships were often overcrowded and unsanitary; around 1865, outbreaks of cholera spread through Indian pilgrims, prompting the British government to impose legal controls on ships and quarantine measures, though many shipowners ignored them for profit. From 1886 to 1893, Thomas Cook & Company served as the official Hajj agent before the arrangement was discontinued. In the 1930s, most Hajj ships were owned by the Mogul Line, and Khan Bahadur Badi Ahmad Chowdhury Take care. to start Hajj journeys from Calcutta port; in 1937, the ship “Englishistan” carried pilgrims from Calcutta. After the partition, in 1948, official Hajj journeys resumed through Chittagong port, and a permanent Hajj camp was established at Pahartali where pilgrims received training; ships named “Safina-i-Arab” and “Safina-i-Arafat” transported thousands of pilgrims annually. District-based quotas were introduced, and sometimes deck-class passengers were selected by lottery; due to long journeys, heat, and overcrowding, illness was common, so doctors and nurses accompanied the Companions . Pilgrims carried food supplies, and accounts describe terrifying experiences during storms at sea; in some cases, when passengers died during the voyage, they could not be buried and were consigned to the sea—something also noted by foreign writers. Hajj was often considered a final journey of life, and departure points were filled with emotional farewells from relatives; the atmosphere became heavy with tears, prayers, and well-wishes as ships departed. During the 1971 war, pilgrims faced severe hardships, and after independence, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman arranged for their return. In the early years after independence, Hajj journeys continued on a limited scale, but with the introduction of air travel, the duration was significantly reduced; although the ship “Hizbul Bahar” was introduced in 1976/77, it was later discontinued, and by the 1980s, sea-based Hajj travel had nearly ceased. Finally, in 1989, Hajj operations were permanently shifted to the Ashkona Hajj Camp in Dhaka, from where Bangladesh’s Hajj activities are currently managed—leaving behind the once vibrant religious emotion, festive environment, and rich tradition that surrounded the Pahartali Hajj camp in Chittagong as a part of history.
When the Hajj pilgrimage started from the port of Chittagong
