Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday (June 22, 2025) laid the foundation stones for the National Forensic Science University (NFSU) campus and a Central Forensic Science Lab in Chhattisgarh’s Nava Raipur Atal Nagar.

Mr. Shah, who is on a two-day visit of the State during which he will tour a security camp and chair meetings on ongoing anti-Maoist operations, was accompanied by Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai, Assembly Speaker Raman Singh and Ministers.

The State Government has allotted 40 acres of land for the NFSU campus, which will be built by the Centre at a cost of ₹400 crore, informed Deputy CM Vijay Sharma, who also holds the Home portfolio in the Sai Cabinet.

The Central Forensic Science Lab will come up on 6-7 acres of land near the NFSU campus, he added.

Later in the day, Mr. Shah will chair a meeting of Director Generals of Police (DGPs) and Additional DGPs of Chhattisgarh and six neighbouring States on anti-Maoist operations, after which he will take part in a meeting on the security situation and ongoing operations against Left Wing Extremism, Mr. Sharma said.

Mr. Shah will also meet the family members of Additional Superintendent of Police Akash Rao Girpunje who lost his life after a pressure IED planted by Maoists exploded on June 9, the Deputy CM informed.

On Monday (June 23), Mr. Shah will visit a Border Security Force (BSF) camp in Narayanpur district, where he will interact with security personnel and Maoism-affected villagers.

He will also take a ground review of the development works going on there, Mr. Sharma added.

Anti-Maoist operations have intensified in Chhattisgarh since the BJP came to power after the 2023 Assembly polls.

Since January last year, more than 400 Maoist ultras have been gunned down by security forces in separate encounters.

The most notable was the killing of Nambala Keshav Rao alias Basavaraju (70), the general secretary and top most operative of the outlawed Communist Party of India (Maoist), in Bastar on May 21.

Mr. Shah has repeatedly declared that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Centre and State Government are committed to eradicating Maoism by March 31, 2026.

The Minority Affairs Ministry on Sunday (June 22, 2025) said it has been actively engaging with States and Union Territories to ensure effective implementation of the UMEED portal, stressing that details of all registered Waqf properties across India are to be mandatorily uploaded on this platform within six months.

In line with this effort, the Ministry said, Minority Affairs Secretary Chandra Shekhar Kumar visited Mumbai on June 21 to hold a comprehensive review meeting with the State Secretary, senior officials and Maharashtra State Waqf Board CEO.

This marks his second such visit following a similar review in Bihar last week, it said.

During the meeting, Mr. Kumar apprised the officials of the rules to be rolled out shortly to support the statutory requirements of the portal, the statement said.

He encouraged proactive participation and invited suggestions from state authorities to streamline the implementation process, it said.

The CEO of the Waqf Board requested the Centre to revisit and ease certain leasing provisions related to Waqf properties.

Mr. Kumar assured that the request will be examined sympathetically, reaffirming the Centre’s commitment to empowering Waqf Boards and enhancing Waqf property management, the statement said.

Apart from reviewing UMEED implementation, the Secretary also assessed the status of projects under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakram (PMJVK) in Maharashtra.

He directed the State officials to submit all pending proposals to the Ministry within one week for necessary action.

Mr. Kumar also held a meeting with officials of the Haj Committee of India (HCoI) in Mumbai, congratulating them on the smooth and successful conduct of Haj 2025.

He noted with satisfaction that this year recorded the lowest number of deaths and health-related incidents among Indian Haj pilgrims.

Mr. Kumar attributed this achievement to improved coordination between the Ministry, Haj Committee of India, deputationists, Saudi authorities and local support systems.

The Secretary especially acknowledged the effectiveness of the Haj Suvidha App, which played a crucial role in enhancing pilgrim experience and easing on-ground challenges.

He affirmed that insights from this year’s Haj operations will be used to further improve arrangements for Haj 2026.

The Ministry of Minority Affairs remains committed to ensuring efficient administration of Waqf properties and a dignified pilgrimage experience for all Hajis through digital empowerment and responsive governance, the statement said.

Following the launch of the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act, 1995 (UMEED) Central Portal on June 6, 2025, the Ministry of Minority Affairs has been actively engaging with states and union territories to ensure the effective implementation of this statutory platform, it said.

As per the mandate of the UMEED portal, details of all registered Waqf properties across India are to be mandatorily uploaded within six months.

The government launched the portal on June 6 to create a digital inventory after geo-tagging all Waqf properties, with Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju calling it a historic step that would ensure that community-owned Waqf assets are utilised effectively and fairly for poor Muslims.

The UMEED portal will serve as a centralised digital platform for real-time uploading, verification, and monitoring of Waqf properties.

As many as 3,894 gram panchayats went to the polls in Gujarat on Sunday (June 22, 2025) in the first such exercise after the state government announced 27 per cent reservation for the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in the local bodies elections in 2023.

The State Election Commission (SEC) said 81 lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise to elect 3,656 sarpanchs and 16,224 panchayat members.

People queued up in large numbers in rural Gujarat to cast their votes using ballot papers across 10,479 polling stations.

Polling has been largely peaceful, with a few incidents of violence, and people turned up to vote despite the rains in parts of the state.

In a village in Banaskantha district, a 95-year-old woman arrived to exercise her franchise with her grandson amid heavy rains.

Police personnel assisted the elderly and differently-abled voters.

Kheda MLA Arjunsinh Chauhan and former Tharad MLA Gujlabsinh Rajput were among the early voters.

“Panchayat is an important pillar of democracy, so the right candidate should win the elections. I would appeal to people to record 100 per cent voting,” Chauhan said.

An incident of violence was reported in Panchmahal district, where the son of a sarpanch candidate was attacked by rival groups in Dhanitra village and was taken to a hospital for treatment.

The counting of votes will take place on June 25.

The SEC has identified 3,939 polling stations as sensitive and 336 as highly sensitive.

Out of 8,326 gram panchayats, for which elections were declared on May 25, general and mid-term polls are being held for 3,541, and bypolls for 353 panchayats.

As many as 1,023 gram panchayats have been declared uncontested and vacant with no candidate filing nomination, the SEC said.

The SEC said gram panchayat polls in six talukas under the Kadi and Visavadar assembly seats were cancelled due to by-elections held there on Thursday.

Gram panchayat elections are usually not contested on party lines. Candidates do not fight on party tickets, though they may be affiliated with political parties.

This is the first time that elections are being held on a big scale in Gujarat after the state government in August 2023 announced a 27% reservation for OBCs in panchayats, municipalities and civic corporations on recommendations of the Zaveri Commission’s report.

Earlier, OBC reservation in local bodies was capped at 10 per cent.

After the Supreme Court ruled that the OBC reservation should be proportionate to their population, the state government, in July 2022, set up the KS Jhaveri Commission to gather and analyse data on the nature and implications of backwardness in local bodies.

The existing quota for Scheduled Castes (14%) and Scheduled Tribes (7%) in local bodies remained unchanged, and there has been no breach of the 50% reservation ceiling.