The Ministry of External Affairs has reported that at least two Indians got killed while 15 others got injured in the accident when a crane crashed onto the Grand Mosque in Mecca.
The ministry also said that officials from the Indian consulate in Jeddah are monitoring the situation on the ground.
According to the MEA statement, “We have been informed that two Indians have been killed in the unfortunate incident. We have received reports that 15 Indians have been injured and are being assisted in various hospitals. Our officials from the Indian consulate in Jeddah are monitoring the situation."
The MEA further said that the Haj pilgrimage would continue as planned.
At least 107 people have been killed and over 200 injured in the accident, which took place during preparations for the annual haj pilgrimage. A powerful storm reportedly toppled the construction crane, which crashed near the Al Salem gate around the holy Kaaba.
Saudi authorities go to great lengths to prepare for the millions of Muslims who converge on Mecca to perform the sacred pilgrimage. Last year, they reduced the numbers permitted to make the haj pilgrimage on safety grounds because of construction work to enlarge the Grand Mosque.
The haj, one of the largest religious gatherings in the world, has been prone to disasters in the past, mainly from stampedes as pilgrims rush to complete rituals and return home. Hundreds of pilgrims died in such a crush in 2006.
Saudi authorities have since spent vast sums to expand the main haj sites and improve Mecca's transport system, in an effort to prevent more disasters.
Security services often ring Islam's sacred city with checkpoints and other measures to prevent people arriving for the pilgrimage without authorisation.
(With Reuters Inputs)
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