A printing plant in Saudi Arabia has been working flat out to produce millions of copies of the Holy Quran that will be distributed free to pilgrims during Haj.

The copies are being printed in 39 languages, including Chinese and Russian, at the King Fahd Complex for Printing the Glorious Quran at Madinah.

Each of the 2.5 million pilgrim who will visit Makkah next week will be given a copy after completing the Haj rituals, an official at the Saudi Government's pavilion at Sharjah Book Fair told Emirates Business.

The complex is one of the busiest printing centres in the world and can produce more than 30 million books a year in three shifts. It is supervised by the kingdom's ministry of Islamic affairs, endowments, dawah and guidance. Many Islamic books – including the Holy Quran – that are printed at the complex are on display at the pavilion and are being distributed free to visitors.

The complex, which regularly promotes Islamic literature at major book fairs around the world, has produced more than 165 million copies of the Holy Quran. While commercial publishers sell the holy book, the complex distributes it for free to Muslims all over the world.

The centre covers 250,000 square metres and has 1,700 employees – 70 per cent of whom are Saudi nationals. About 600 employees work in the quality control and binding section.

"The complex publishes the Holy Quran in different sizes and languages," Abdan Alabdan, Director-General of Printing and Publishing at the Institute of Public Administration in Riyadh, told this newspaper. "A translation desk at the complex translates the text into 25 different languages from around the world."

The translated text is verified by a committee of experts in Quranic studies who checks the methods of recitation, calligraphy and punctuation. The committee gives the final approval for printing after ensuring every aspect of the text is correct.

Another official said: "The complex, which is located in Madinah Al Munawara, prints copies of the Holy Quran in 39 different languages including Chinese, Russian, Vietnamese, Sindhi and German.

"A single shift can produce 10 million copies a year, and if the complex operates three shifts, it can produce 30 million copies per year. The complex has produced 90 different publication's complete editions and extracts, translations, recordings, books of Sunnah and the biography of Prophet Mohammed (PBUH), among others."

Other Saudi organisations taking part in the book fair include the ministry of education, ministry of Islamic affairs, universities, libraries and youth sports associations.

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