Feature
Digital connectivity a basic right like school education: Modi
Mumbai: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Saturday pitched for making digital connectivity a “basic right” for children just as their right to schooling, and stressed the need to make school education more “creative”.
“School education in science and mathematics should become more creative and stimulating. Let us also use the internet to bring the best of our scientists in direct contact with our children and our youth. Digital connectivity should become as much a basic right as access to school,” Modi said, while inaugurating the 102nd Indian Science Congress here.
The university system in India, Modi said, must be placed at the cutting edge of the research and development activities in the country.
He called for broadening the scope of investment in science and technology that is at present focused on central government agencies.
“Our universities must be freed from the clutches of excessive regulation and cumbersome procedures. They must have a higher degree of academic freedom and autonomy, and, there should be as much emphasis on research as on teaching,” he said.
Modi said India needed to foster a strong culture of collaboration between institutions and across disciplines to take advantage of developments, innovations and expertise in diverse areas.
Underscoring the importance of international collaboration in scientific research and the need to benefit from growing the trend of such endeavours, Modi said he “placed science and technology at the forefront of our diplomatic engagement”.
“As I have travelled abroad, I have personally sought out scientists to explore collaborations in areas like clean energy, agriculture, biotechnology, medicine and healthcare.
“We have built excellent partnerships with all leading nations to address the grand challenges of the world today. I have also offered our expertise to our neighbours and other developing countries,” he said.
Modi said India’s global competitiveness depended not on reinventing the wheel but on sustained development and indigenous innovations.
“Our long-term global competitiveness will depend not on replicating what others have done, but through a process of sustained development and innovation.”
Modi urged the domestic industrial sector to “step up investments in science and technology in its own interest” and make the practice a corporate social responsibility.
“India’s own pharmaceutical industry has carved out a place for itself in the world, because it invests significantly in research,” he said.
“For a safe, sustainable, prosperous future for India, or global leadership in a knowledge and technology intensive world, we need to put science, technology and innovation at the top of national priorities,” the prime minister concluded.
The five-day conference at the University of Mumbai will see deliberations and presentation of papers by scientists and Nobel laureates from across the globe.
As the Science Congress returns to Mumbai after 45 years, the emphasis will be on showcasing the city as a science hub as well as being the financial capital of India.
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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