Feature
Two sisters burnt alive by unidentified person in Uttar Pradesh
Bareilly: In a horrifying incident two teenage sisters were burnt alive by unidentified persons in Uttar Pradesh Bareilly on Friday, according to reports. While the motive behind the attack is still unknown, one of the two sisters claimed that the attack may have been by a stalker.
According to a media reports, both sisters were asleep when the attackers sprinkled petrol on them and set them on fire at their home in Devraniya Jagir, a village in Bareilly. While the elder sister sustained 95 percent burns, the younger sister suffered 60 percent burns.
The sisters were taken to the intensive care unit of the district hospital and their condition is reported to be critical.
The Nawabganj police has filed an FIR against the unidentified persons under Section 307 (attempt to murder) and other sections of the Indian Penal Code, as told to media.
“We are closely monitoring the situation and several teams have been pressed into action. Bottle containing petrol and two mobile phones have been recovered from the spot. A couple of suspects are being rounded up for possible leads,” said senior superintendent of police, Jogendra Kumar.
While the police are still investigating the reason behind the attack, the younger sister told to reporters that she was being stalked and harassed by a man for past several months.
The incident comes just days after a 17-year-old girl was murdered in Uttar Pradesh Ballia district by five boys of her village, who had reportedly been stalking her for months.
According to media, the girl was on her way to school, when some boys, who had been stalking her for months, tried to talk to her.
“Ragni Dubey, a resident of Bajha village, was on her way to school on her bicycle when five men on two motorcycles intercepted her near Shankarpur Bhawani temple and pressured her to talk to them,” the police said.
“As the girl refused to talk, they pushed her bicycle and when she fell down on the road, they repeatedly stabbed her and left her bleeding profusely,” the police added. The family members rushed her to the district hospital where doctors declared her brought dead.
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.