"Around 45,000 pilgrims will perform Haj through private tour operators," External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh said at the Annual Haj Conference in New Delhi.
According to official sources, 82,000 pilgrims would perform Haj through the Haj Committee, while the remaining 55,000 pilgrims would undertake the pilgrimage through private tour operators.
As one of Islam's five pillars, the Haj is enjoined on all Muslims who are physically able to carry it out, but this year the pilgrimage follows uprisings across the Arab world and growing tensions between Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia and Shi'ite power Iran.
The annual Islamic pilgrimage of Haj that is performed by millions of Muslims every year will begin on October 24.
Here's a recap of the events from the past 48 hours.
"The message of Islam is the message of peace and brotherhood. And each one of you is the ambassador of our country," he told a Haj Goodwill Delegation that called on him this morning.
A strong demand for revocation of reservation and other benefits to tribals who convert to other religions was made in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
Conforming to the Sharia law, the airline 'strictly prohibits' alcohol in flights and all the food items provided will be 'halal'. Prayers from the Holy Quran will also be recited before the departure of each flight.
Ehsan Jafri was killed during the riots. Zakia Jafri, his wife, had filed the petition challenging the special investigation team's report giving a clean chit to Modi and 63 others.
Tens of thousands of white-clad pilgrims, including Indians, thronged Mount Arafat in Saudi Arabia just outside Mecca, for the climax of the Hajj.
'Allhamdulillah May Allah accept our prayers ...', Sania posted on her Facebook page along with photographs of son Izhan and her family.
Catch up on all the big news of the week gone by, in images.
In his monthly Mann Ki Baat radio broadcast, Modi said Amrit Kalash Yatra will be organised under the campaign and 7,500 pots carrying soil from different corners of the country will be brought to the national capital along with saplings.
Here are the images that encapsulated the biggest moments in the month of August.
Over 1.5 lakh Indians along with tens of thousands of Muslims from across the world began moving from the holy city of Mecca to nearby tent-city of Mina, marking the beginning of the annual Haj pilgrimage.
The Pandits congratulated the hajis for completing the pilgrimage and sought their blessings. They offered roses to the pilgrims.
Maldivian President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom had a lucky escape while his wife and two others were injured when an explosion ripped through their speedboat as they returned home after performing Haj in Saudi Arabia on Monday.
Here's a look at some deadly hajj-related incidents in the recent past.
Besides, Rs 360 crore will be allocated for Chief Ministers' Special Development Programme and Minorities Colony Development Programme in the year, he said.
Asserting that his government's decision to ban instant triple talaq has boosted the overall sense of security for Muslim women, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked Bharatiya Janata Party leaders to reach out to them during the upcoming festival of Raksha Bandhan.
Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan on Tuesday instructed the states in the National Capital Region to take all possible measures to prevent any spike in air pollution levels during the upcoming Under-17 FIFA World Cup in Delhi to save India the blushes.
Like the rest of the country, Sai Paranjpye, who directed the late veteran in her 1981 cult comedy Chashme Buddoor, was stunned with the news.
'We have taught our children about every religion. But we have never told them that they belong to any particular religion. I always believed that these differences would slowly fade away'
The Hajjis were carried in luxury buses owned by the State Road Transport Corporation from the Tourist Reception Centre.
Modi held several bilateral and trilateral meetings with world leaders.
Here's a glimpse of all that happened around the world last month.
This is the second major disaster at Mecca this month.
Muslims around the world are celebrating Islam's biggest holiday with prayers, gifts, traditional visits with family and friends, and feasts. Eid al-Adha, or Feast of Sacrifice, commemorates what Muslims believe was Prophet Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son in accordance with God's will, though in the end God provides him with a sheep to sacrifice instead. In remembrance, Muslim faithful slaughter sheep, cattle, camels and other livestock in an act of sacrifice to show gratitude for their blessings, divide the meat into three equal portions and give some of it to the poor.
The Samajwadi Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party are using communal violence to polarise the voters in the state with an eye on the 2014 general elections, reports Sharat Pradhan
The death toll climbed to 5,24,701 with nine fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.
Saudi Arabia has made it mandatory for Indians visiting the country to have polio vaccination and the immediate impact of the sudden decision would be on Haj pilgrims going for their annual pilgrimage.
The number of Indians killed in a stampede at the Hajj rose to 45 on Monday, as authorities identified 10 more bodies among the victims of the worst tragedy in 25 years to hit the annual pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.
A guide to where you can't use the selfie stick.
"Unfortunately, there are six more Indians taking the toll to 35," External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj tweeted.
Let it gradually pull itself out of international routes and focus on linking remote towns and cities.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will leave for the Belgian capital as part of a three-nation tour during which he will attend the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington and visit.
'The osmosis between Hinduism and Islam that really gave birth to the Hindustani or Indo-Islamic civilisation was due to the conversation between Muslim mystics and yogis.'
On Thursday, maximum new cases were recorded in Balochistan where the number of infected people rose to 76 from 23. Punjab was the next where the number rose from 33 to 78, Dawn reported.
'Mr Kejriwal is almost exactly the package that Mr Modi offers: Personal aggrandisement, the building of a personality cult through full-page newspaper ads day after day, populist schemes involving subsidies (whether affordable or required), abandonment of secular principles, exaggerated claims and no checks on leadership,' points out T N Ninan.
The Samajwadi Party government in Uttar Pradesh will launch the first train carrying Hindus on an officially sponsored free pilgrimage to Haridwar and Rishilesh on March 14.
