Ninety-eight Indian pilgrims have lost their lives in Saudi Arabia during Hajj this year, as confirmed by the government on June 21.
It further added that all deaths are due to “natural illness, old age”.
"Every year, many Indian pilgrims visit Hajj. This year, 1,75,000 Indian pilgrims have visited Saudi for Hajj so far. The core Hajj period is from July 9 to 22. So far, 98 Indian pilgrims have died. The causes are natural illness and old age," the Ministry of External Affairs said.
The toll last year was 187, it added.
Due to the intense heat, over 1000 pilgrims have lost their lives this year in Saudi Arabia’s Mecca.
Around 658 pilgrims from Egypt have died, according to an Arab diplomat. Of them, 630 were unregistered pilgrims.
Jordan, Indonesia, Iran, Senegal, Tunisia have also reported pilgrim deaths.
Social media has been flooded with images of several other pilgrims who are still missing.