DUSHANBE, May 12, 2013, Asia-Plus  -- The head of the Council of Ulemo (Islamic council that issues fatwas and religious guidance to Islamic religious organizations), Saidmukkaram Abduqodirzoda, has said Central Asia’s biggest mosque was some 40 percent complete.

He remarked this during the inauguration ceremony for the Republican Qur’an Reciting Contest in Dushanbe on May 10.

According to him, it will not be only the biggest mosque in the Central Asian region; it will be in third place globally following the mosques in Mecca and Medina.        

We will recall that Tajikistan began construction of what is going to be Central Asia''s biggest mosque not far from downtown Dushanbe in October 2011.  Tajik President Emomali Rahmon took control of an excavator to start digging the foundation for the building.

The construction of the mosque initially started in 2009, but the project was halted for unknown reasons.

A total cost of the project is 100 million U.S. dollars.  The Persian Gulf kingdom of Qatar is putting up 70 percent of the cost of the project, with Tajikistan raising the rest.

The mosque will accommodate some 150,000 worshippers at a time.