Feature
Long queues at banks, ATMs after long weekend
New Delhi. Long queues outside banks in Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) were a common sight on Tuesday as they opened after a gap of three days.
After the weekend closure on second Saturday and Sunday, the banks were also closed on Monday on account of Milad-un-Nabi.
No relief from queues
As most of the banks hung “No Cash” boards within two-three hours of working, it was a great disappointment for those standing there for hours.”Why is there no cash in the banks
for people,” asked an agitated Ram Krishna Mahto, who failed to withdraw cash after waiting in the line since 10 a.m.
Pointing a finger at bank personnel, he alleged: “They must be passing on money through the back door.”
The ICICI Bank at Connaught Place was one of the many banks in the city which stopped distributing cash after going “cashless” within hours of opening.
Disappointed, some people started questioning the very rationale of the demonetisation decision, saying they were also feeling that banks were colluding with businessmen to change money, leaving the banks “dry”.
“Government should by now realise that this problem is not going to go away in 50 days, as they told us. I don’t think things will go back to normal anytime before February or March,” said Utsav Jain, a college student.
Tarun, who works at a private company, said he was happy when the government decided to demonetise high value currency notes to check corruption and counterfeit money but now he feels that things are going in the wrong direction.
“I am totally fed up with this system. Not only I, everyone is suffering from this decision. There was three day off in the bank. Today after waiting for hours in queue, bank officials said that there is no cash,” Tarun said.
He also questioned where the money is going.
People were also seen arguing with bank guards and other staff members after they were told that the cash was finished.
Security had to be beefed up at some banks to manage the crowd. Similar scenes were seen outside most of the
-NCR ATMs as well.
Meanwhile, National Organisation of Bank Workers’ Vice President Ashwani Rana said all bank employees were not indulging in wrong-doing and were performing their duty sincerely and with honesty.
Referring to news reports about the alleged nexus between some bank officials and unscrupulous elements for changing the demonetised currencies, Rana said: “Don’t blame banks and all the 10 lakh bank employees and officers for the shameful act of just a few.”
“We also request the government to conduct an investigation so that the guilty could be exposed and punished,” Rana said.
As reports regarding involvement of bank officials in corrupt practices are surfacing, disappointed people were heard blaming bank employees for not distributing cash to them.
“Totally disappointed. I am fed up with this system. I am returning home without withdrawing cash even after I have taken a day off from my work,” a worried man said.
He was anxious and wondered when this “less cash” problem will be solved.
“I had been to many ATMs. Either they were ‘out of cash’ or the queues were unexpectedly long,” one law student said.
He hoped that he will be able to get cash although he spent two hours waiting for his turn to withdraw cash.
The State Scores Extra High on Gaming-Friendly Industry Index
Meghalaya scored 92.85 out of 100 possible points in a Gaming Industry Index and proved to be India’s most gaming-friendly state following its recent profound legislation changes over the field allowing land-based and online gaming, including games of chance, under a licensing regime.
The index by the UK India Business Council (UKIBC) uses a scale of 0 to 100 to measure the level of legalisation on gambling and betting achieved by a state based on the scores over a set of seven different games – lottery, horse racing, betting on sports, poker, rummy, casino and fantasy sports
Starting from February last year, Meghalaya became the third state in India’s northeast to legalise gambling and betting after Sikkim and Nagaland. After consultations with the UKIBC, the state proceeded with the adoption of the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Act, 2021 and the nullification of the Meghalaya Prevention of Gambling Act, 1970. Subsequently in December, the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021 were notified and came into force.
All for the Tourists
The move to legalise and license various forms of offline and online betting and gambling in Meghalaya is aimed at boosting tourism and creating jobs, and altogether raising taxation revenues for the northeastern state. At the same time, the opportunities to bet and gamble legally will be reserved only for tourists and visitors.
“We came out with a Gaming Act and subsequently framed the Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021. The government will accordingly issue licenses to operate games of skill and chance, both online and offline,” said James P. K. Sangma, Meghalaya State Law and Taxation Minister speaking in the capital city of Shillong. “But the legalized gambling and gaming will only be for tourists and not residents of Meghalaya,” he continued.
To be allowed to play, tourists and people visiting the state for work or business purposes will have to prove their non-resident status by presenting appropriate documents, in a process similar to a bank KYC (Know Your Customer) procedure.
Meghalaya Reaches Out to a Vast Market
With 140 millions of people in India estimated to bet regularly on sports, and a total of 370 million desi bettors around prominent sporting events, as per data from one of the latest reports by Esse N Videri, Meghalaya is set to reach out and take a piece of a vast market.
Estimates on the financial value of India’s sports betting market, combined across all types of offline channels and online sports and cricket predictions and betting platforms, speak about amounts between $130 and $150 billion (roughly between ₹9.7 and ₹11.5 lakh crore).
Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Delhi are shown to deliver the highest number of bettors and Meghalaya can count on substantial tourists flow from their betting circles. The sports betting communities of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana are also not to be underestimated.
Among the sports, cricket is most popular, registering 68 percent of the total bet count analyzed by Esse N Videri. Football takes second position with 11 percent of the bets, followed by betting on FIFA at 7 percent and on eCricket at 5 percent. The last position in the Top 5 of popular sports for betting in India is taken by tennis with 3 percent of the bet count.
Local Citizens will Still have Their Teer Betting
Meghalaya residents will still be permitted to participate in teer betting over arrow-shooting results. Teer is a traditional method of gambling, somewhat similar to a lottery draw, and held under the rules of the Meghalaya Regulation of the Game of Arrow Shooting and the Sale of Teer Tickets Act, 2018.
Teer includes bettors wagering on the number of arrows that reach the target which is placed about 50 meters away from a team of 20 archers positioned in a semicircle.
The archers shoot volleys of arrows at the target for ten minutes, and players place their bets choosing a number between 0 and 99 trying to guess the last two digits of the number of arrows that successfully pierce the target.
If, for example, the number of hits is 256, anyone who has bet on 56 wins an amount eight times bigger than their wager.
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