The nationwide digitisation drive for Waqf properties under UMEED Portal (Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development) officially concluded on December 6, after the six-month upload window expired.
According to data released by the Ministry of Minority Affairs (MOMA), a total of 5,17,040 properties were “initiated” (i.e. submitted) on the portal during this period. Of these, 2,16,905 properties have been fully approved by authorised reviewers. Meanwhile 2,13,941 properties remain in a “pending” queue submitted but yet to receive final verification. Additionally, 10,869 submissions were rejected during the verification process.
The final-hour rush to comply with the deadline including a surge in uploads, multiple training sessions for State Waqf Boards, review meetings, and high-level interventions significantly accelerated the process in the last few days.
Why the UMEED Portal Matters
Launched on June 6, 2025 by Union Minister of Minority Affairs Kiren Rijiju, the UMEED Portal was introduced in the wake of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025. The law mandates that all Waqf properties including mosques, graveyards, madrasahs, charitable institutions, endowment lands and other trust-assets be registered and digitised on a central portal. The goal: to ensure transparency, prevent unauthorised occupation or misuse, and create a unified national record of Waqf assets.
Prior to this exercise, the previous system (the older WAMSI portal) listed around 8.7 lakh Waqf properties across various boards.
Mixed Results, Significant Progress Amidst Challenges
The overall numbers over 5 lakh properties submitted reflect a major push by state Waqf Boards and the Centre to digitise Waqf assets at scale. Yet, they also highlight that a large chunk of submissions remain unverified or pending.
The fact that more than 2.13 lakh properties have not cleared the verification stage points to procedural bottlenecks: possibly delays in documentation review, resource constraints, or backlog in state-level verification.
The rejection of nearly 11,000 submissions may reflect insufficient or incorrect documentation, mismatches, or discrepancies identified during review.
In several states, including north India, the registration effort saw hurdles. Earlier reports from states such as Delhi Waqf Board, and Waqf Boards in Haryana and Punjab described technical glitches frequent portal crashes, OTP delays, and system instability which caused stress and last-minute rushes.
In some regions, particularly in larger states such as Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board, only a small fraction of the total registered Waqf institutions completed uploads before the deadline. For instance, out of about 1.26 lakh institutions under that Board, around 15,000 had submitted data by early December.
Analysts argue that such gaps pending verifications, rejections, incomplete uploads might undermine the promise of full transparency and public accountability, unless follow-up measures ensure completion.
What Happens Next, Pending Entries, Tribunal Route, and Risk of Delay
With the deadline now over, several states and Waqf Boards have indicated that they may approach judicial forums for relief. For properties still pending or for new submissions delayed due to technical or documentation problems the only recourse may be via state-level Waqf tribunals.
In some states such as Telangana Waqf Board, officials reported that more than 46,000 properties had at least reached the “maker” stage (initial data entry), of which over 33,500 were Gazette-notified Waqf properties. As of now, only a portion have been verified at “checker” and “approver” levels.
The post-deadline path depends on how quickly Waqf tribunals act on extension or verification requests and how efficiently states can address backlog and documentation issues.
At the national level, the exercise marks a landmark attempt to digitalise and rationalise Waqf property records. But experts caution that unless follow-up is rigorous, many assets may remain undocumented or in legal limbo.
Voices, Concerns & What Stakeholders Are Saying
State-level Waqf boards and caretakers (mutawallis) have voiced frustration over repeated technical failures of the portal long periods of downtime, server crashes, delayed OTPs which inhibited timely uploads.
Some non-compliant mutawallis reportedly lacked awareness, digital literacy, or faced difficulty in gathering decades-old paper documentation especially for older endowments such as graveyards, waqf lands, or charitable properties. This posed a challenge during the upload window.
Amid criticism, the Ministry of Minority Affairs argues that the final surge in uploads just before the deadline prompted by training workshops, review meetings, and state-centre coordination demonstrates commitment by state boards
What This Means for the Future of Waqf Management in India
The closure of the UMEED portal’s first uploading phase does not mark the end but perhaps the beginning of a new chapter in Waqf governance. Key implications:
Once fully verified and approved, millions of Waqf properties will be captured in a unified, digital national database. This could help curb encroachments, misuse, or unauthorised sales, a long-standing concern around Waqf lands.
A transparent repository may enable better planning and development of Waqf assets mosques, madrassahs, graveyards, charity institutions for community welfare and religious purposes.
But success depends on diligent follow-through: clearing the pending backlog, verifying submissions timely, resolving documentation issues, and monitoring rejected cases for re-submission or appeal.
The UMEED exercise with its large numbers and high stakes stands as a landmark in modernising Waqf governance. However, the coming months may prove decisive in determining whether the initiative realises its goal of transparency, accountability, and preservation of Waqf heritage.
