Fawad Chaudhry launches moon-sighting website

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry while launching a website based on moon-sighting calendar on Sunday said that Eid ul Fitr this year will fall on June 05, ARY News reported.

He said the state could not force any person over celebration of religious festivals, it is part of belief.

“We have invited the attention of the religious scholars that the moon could also be sighted with the help of technology”, the minister said.

The technology could easily locate the position of the moon without any hassle, the science minister further said.

Talking on the features of the moon-sighting website, Fawad Chaudhry said it provides all relevant information.

The people in Pakistan and all Muslims across the world could get help from this website, he added.

Earlier, the Ministry of Science and Technology had announced to prepare Lunar Calendar for five years with details from Year 2019 to 2024.

Federal Minister of Science Fawad Chaudhry announced earlier said that the lunar calendar prepared by a committee of experts has been forwarded to the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII).

The calendar will be sent to the federal cabinet after endorsement of the CII, he said.

The CII will review the lunar calendar and will decide whether the evidence about sighting the moon with naked eye is only acceptable or sighting the crescent with equipment is also acceptable under the Islamic law.

The CII in its session after Eid will decide the matter after getting opinion from various schools of Islamic thought, he said.