The kingdom has already launched services to let people register biometrics for Hajj and Umrah.

Cross-border travel was completely shut down during the lockdown across the globe, and even within countries, movements were highly restricted to make sure the virus doesn't find its way into crowds, to trigger an outbreak. With places of worship out of bounds to most people in the Middle East, yearly pilgrimages were also affected by the healthcare crisis, and holy sites had to be locked up for almost a year.

But just a year after having to cancel the annual Hajj, Saudi Arabia bounced back with a tech-savvy push to make sure that the age old tradition can adapt to a new normal, by facilitating social distancing during the pilgrimage. After introducing vaccine passports among other digital tools for swift and safe traveling in a post-pandemic world, the kingdom has started issuing permits for Umrah pilgrimage at the holy sites in Makkah and Madina, through online apps.

Aimed at avoiding crowds at the grand mosque and the Prophet's mosque, the service will be available through Eatmarna and Tawakkalna apps, launched by Saudi authorities to tackle the pandemic. But before getting the permit from these portals, users will have to register on the Quddum platform, in order to perform rituals in a contactless manner.

Earlier this year, the kingdom was able to host the annual Hajj pilgrimage, while ensuring safety for visitors, by deploying robots to sanitise the holy sites, and droids which were distributing water to the pilgrims. The successful use of digital services and gadgets was followed by deployment of a mechanism with which people abroad could self-register their biometrics via smartphones, which could then be verified on their arrival into the country.

With its latest move, the Saudi regime has extended online Umrah permits to people visiting from other countries, which signifies a gradual relaxation in norms that restricted the number of people at holy sites. Last month, the grand mosque in Makkah had resumed prayers at full capacity, for the first time after the lockdown.