Feature
5th Anniversary of Perm Mandir
Mathura : The celebration of the 5th Anniversary of Perm Mandir continued this morning with devotees performing aarti then singing sankirtan and walking around Prem Mandir, performing Abhishek and Sadhana session with JKP Presidents Dr.Vishakha Tripathi , Dr Shyama Tripathi and Dr Krishna Tripathi.
The annual festival started at around 10 o clock with a very grand “abhishek” of Lord Krishna and Radha rani after which the people there saw the image of the deity and seeked blessings and overwhelmed with faith and joy .Everyones eyes were filled with tears of joy and they were very happy to be the part of the grand festival .The devotional offering made to god , typically consisting of food that was later shared among all as bhoj followed by the aarti and bhajan which made the festival more auspicious and joyful .There were continous screams of “Radhe Radhe ” during the festival .
JKP’s president Dr Visakha Tripathi said “Prem Mandir is a religious and spiritual complex situated on a 54-acre site on the outskirts of Vrindavan, Mathura, India. It is dedicated to Radha Krishna and Sita Ram. The temple structure was established by the fifth Jagadguru, Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj . The foundation stone of Prem Mandir was laid in January 2001 by Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj and the inauguration ceremony took place from 15 February to 17 February 2012. The temple was opened to public on 17 February.”
JKP’s Secretary Raam Puri informed that The foundation stone of this temple was laid by Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj in the presence of thousand devotees on 14 January 2001. It took about 12 years and 1000 skilled artists to give Prem Mandir its special shape and design. On the one hand, people were using chisels and hammers to engrave special inlays and on the other, computerized robotic machines were giving shape to those stones; replicating the lilas of Shri Radha Krishna. Such specialized machinery has rarely been used anywhere in India Before.
The temple represents a renaissance in ancient Indian art and architecture. Prem Mandir is constructed entirely of Italian marble. With its intricate carvings, the display of refined craftsmanship and the elaborate inlay work, replete with semi-precious stones, the temple is seen as a unique divine structure within Vrindavan. The total dimensions of the temple including its flag is 125 ft. high, 190 ft. long and the 128 ft. wide raised platform serves as the seat of the two-storeyed sparkling white monument.
Entertainment
Meghalaya Reserves Legalized Gambling and Sports Betting for Tourists
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.