PM Modi inaugurates Surat Diamond Bourse in Gujarat
Surat (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday inaugurated the Surat Diamond Bourse, the world's largest and modern centre for international diamond and jewellery business.
The Surat Diamond Bourse (SDB) building, the world's largest office complex with more than 67 lakh square feet of floor area, is located at Khajod village near Surat city.
It will be a global centre for trading of both rough and polished diamonds as well as jewellery, as per an official statement.
It will comprise a state-of-the-art 'Customs Clearance House' for import and export, jewellery mall for retail jewellery business and facility of international banking and safe vaults, it said.
Several diamond traders, including those based in Mumbai earlier, have already taken possession of their offices, which were allotted by the management after auction, SDB's media convener Dinesh Navadiya said in a statement recently.
The SDB is part of the Diamond Research and Mercantile (DREAM) City.
Former Gujarat chief minister Anandiben Patel in February 2015 performed the ground-breaking ceremony of the SDB and DREAM City project.
With 67 lakh square feet of floor space, the SDB is now the world's largest office building having nearly 4,500 diamond trading offices, a release said.
The mega structure, built on a plot of 35.54 acres inside the DREAM City, has nine towers of 15 floors with office spaces ranging from 300 sq ft to 1 lakh sq ft.
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Parliament passes Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025
New Delhi (PTI): Parliament early Friday passed the contentious Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, after it was approved by the Rajya Sabha.
The Lok Sabha had on Thursday approved the Bill after over a 12-hour debate.
In Rajya Sabha, the Bill got 128 votes in its favour and 95 against after all the amendments moved by the opposition were rejected.
In the lower house, the bill was supported by 288 MPs while 232 voted against it.
Participating in a debate in the Rajya Sabha, Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the Bill was brought with a number of amendments based on suggestions given by various stakeholders.
"The Waqf Board is a statutory body. All government bodies should be secular," the minister said, explaining the inclusion of non-Muslims on the board.
He, however, said the number of non-Muslims has been restricted to only four out of 22.
Rijiju also alleged that the Congress and other opposition parties, and not the BJP, were trying to scare Muslims with the Waqf Bill.
"You (opposition) are pushing Muslims out of the mainstream," he added.
He said for 60 years, the Congress and others ruled the country, but did not do much for Muslims and the community continues to live in poverty.
"Muslims are poor, who is responsible? You (Congress) are. Modi is now leading the government to uplift them," the minister said.
According to the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, Waqf tribunals will be strengthened, a structured selection process will be maintained, and a tenure will be fixed to ensure efficient dispute resolution.
As per the Bill, while Waqf institutions' mandatory contribution to Waqf boards is reduced from 7 per cent to 5 per cent, Waqf institutions earning over Rs 1 lakh will undergo audits by state-sponsored auditors.
A centralised portal will automate Waqf property management, improving efficiency and transparency.
The Bill proposes that practising Muslims (for at least five years) can dedicate their property to the Waqf, restoring pre-2013 rules.
It stipulates that women must receive their inheritance before the Waqf declaration, with special provisions for widows, divorced women and orphans.
The Bill proposes that an officer above the rank of collector investigate government properties claimed as Waqf.
It also proposes that non-Muslim members be included in the central and state Waqf boards for inclusivity.
