Maha to ammend Wakf Board Act to punish fraudsters

Maharashtra Minority Affairs Minister Eknath Khadse today said the Wakf Board Act would be amended to take stern action against those guilty of misappropriating the Wakf properties.
"Suitable ammendments would be done to punish the guilty. The Wakf land spans about one lakh acres, out of which 70,000 acres is encroached. We will appoint additional district collector to keep a record of these encroachments, (we will) remove encroachments, preserve land and utilise it for the welfare of the community," Khadse told the Legislative Assembly.
He said polytechnic and ITI colleges would be set up in the minority-dominated districts and 70 per cent of seats would be reserved for their members.

If the seats are not filled, they would be given to open category students. Similarly, colleges and hostels for girls of minority community would be set up, Khadse added.
PWD Minister Chandrakant Patil, while replying to a debate on demands of his ministry, said a decision on toll plazas would be taken in this session itself.
Food and Civil Supplies Minister Girish Bapat said a new law would be introduced to check irregularities and corruption in the public distribution system (PDS) and the offence would be made non-bailable, he said.