According to a well-placed source on Friday, the West Bengal Minority Affairs and Madrasah Education Department has directed all district magistrates to start uploading information about Waqf properties to the Center’s “UMID” portal. Officials described the exercise as a “time-bound compliance requirement” set by the Union government.
He stated that the state administration has been prompted to begin the data-entry process right away because the Centre has requested that the states upload information on all “undisputed” Waqf holdings by December 6. “There are four main directives listed in the notification delivered to district magistrates. To clarify the uploading process, they have been requested to have meetings with imams, muezzins, and madrasa instructors,” the official stated.
He continued, “The DMs have been informed that only uncontested properties are to be entered in the portal.” The official stated that “all districts have been asked to set up facilitation centres wherever technical support is necessary,” and that the districts have been instructed to make sure that the workflow proceeds without delay. Earlier this year, the Union government changed a number of the Waqf Act, 1995’s requirements.
A senior state government source noted that “there is no stay on the implementation of the Centre’s proposed changes” even though the Supreme Court is still considering certain of these amendments. “It means that the state is obliged to follow the directive within the given timeframe,” he said.
He clarified that mutawallis of 8,063 Waqf estates in West Bengal are required by the updated regulations to register all property details on the UMID portal by December 6. However, after the announcement of the changes, mutawallis in a number of districts have complained about the State Waqf Board’s lack of cooperation.
Although the administration had “no option but to initiate the process swiftly” because the Supreme Court had not stopped the execution of the amended regulations, a senior state official acknowledged the worries. The official stated that the state apparatus has been instructed to give the assignment top attention as the deadline draws near.
