The National Waqf Development Corporation (NAWADCO) and the National Building Construction Corporation signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Monday to develop Waqf properties in Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka. Union Minority Affairs Minister Najma Heptullah said NAWADCO had identified two properties in Rajasthan, six in Madhya Pradesh and seven in Karnataka and one piece of land in Delhi for development as institutional and commercial projects.
The public-sector NAWADCO was established last December with an authorised share capital of Rs. 500 crore to mobilise resources for developing Waqf properties in a Shariah-compliant way. The resources generated by such development of Waqf properties will be used for the welfare of Muslims.
Ms. Heptullah said that to begin with, properties lying vacant would be taken up for easy and early development. In the case of Rajasthan, work was already in progress — for a hospital in Jodhpur and a school in Ajmer. NAWADCO was set up on the recommendations of the Sachar committee report, which estimated that Waqf properties, if properly developed, could fetch an annual income of Rs. 1.2 lakh crore.
