Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry on Sunday launched Pakistan’s “first official” moon-sighting website and a calendar showing main Islamic dates and months for the next five years based on scientific evidence.
The website, pakmoonsighting.pk, has been launched by Chaudhry’s ministry “to halt the moon-sighting controversy” that rears its head in the country every year prior to religious festivals.
Named Moon Sighting Pakistan, the website features sections such as a monthly Hijri (Islamic) calendar for the next five years, a day-to-day lunar calendar against dates from the Gregorian calendar, and the dates on which the first day of every lunar month will fall.
MoonSighting Pakistan launched….. https://t.co/1HSEzw7cMf
— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) May 26, 2019
Chaudhry had earlier this month announced that the lunar calendar being prepared by a scientific committee formed by the government and showing the exact dates of important Islamic occasions — Ramazan, Eidul Fitr, Eidul Azha, Muharram — would be finalised by the 15th of Ramazan.
The mobile phone app was also under preparation by the scientific committee after which people would also be able to sight moon on their smartphones.
The National Assembly was informed recently that an amount of Rs3.06 million was spent last year on the sighting of the crescent for Muharram, Ramazan, Eidul Fitr and Eidul Azha.
