UMEED Portal Launch: A Leap Forward in Waqf Property Management

The government has launched the UMEED portal to digitally manage Waqf properties, aiming to ensure fairness and efficiency. Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju highlights its role in transparency and rights protection. However, its launch faces opposition due to pending legal challenges against the Waqf Act in the Supreme Court.

The government inaugurated the UMEED portal on Friday, a transformative step in the digital management of Waqf properties. Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju lauds it as a 'historic step' that promises to ensure the effective and fair utilization of community-owned Waqf assets for impoverished Muslims.

The newly launched UMEED central portal, established under the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act of 1995, will function as a consolidated digital platform. Key features include real-time property management, geo-tagging, and transparency-enhancing tools such as online grievance redressal and integrated GIS mapping.

Despite heralded advancements, the portal's launch is embroiled in controversy. The All India Muslim Personal Law Board opposes its implementation amidst ongoing Supreme Court petitions, with claims that it contradicts the current legal status of the Waqf Act. Such opposition also comes from various minority communities and rights organizations.

(With inputs from agencies.)