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Making a difference: Teenager’s passion sets an example in Kashmir (IANS Special Series)

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By Sheikh Qayoom
Laharwalpora (Jammu and Kashmir), Dec 10 (IANS) Bilal Ahmad Dar, 18, is ready to start his daily journey into the Wular Lake, said to be Asia’s largest fresh-water lake, early in the morning on a bitterly cold December day.

For the last four years, this teenaged breadwinner of the family has been collecting plastic bottles, metal scrap, empty tetra packs and other waste left behind by locals and tourists, who come to visit the lake and end up littering it.

Bilal does not go to school like other boys of his age. He had to hang up his school bag when his father, Muhammad Ramzan, died five years ago leaving behind his mother, Mugli, elder sister Kulsuma, younger sister Rakshana and Bilal. Fate forced Bilal to make a living for his poor family by collecting refuse and trash from Wular Lake and selling it to scrap buyers.

In the process, this teenager has been doing what the government failed to do — cleaning the famous lake, the community’s lifeline — which was his passion even as a kid.

“Wular Lake is our life. I have always been pained to see people leaving behind metallic, plastic and other waste while they come here for sightseeing. Even when my father was alive, I used to go to the bank of the lake and try to remove unhealthy waste left there. When my father died, I had no option but to give up my studies and start earning for myself and my family.

“I decided to make a living by chasing my passion to preserve the lake on whose banks I was born and brought up,” Bilal told IANS.

The small, apparently unnoticed effort was lauded by none other than the country’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who made a special mention of Bilal and his effort in his “Mann Ki Baat” address to the nation.

Bilal said, “I did not know about the development till officials and media people came to our village. It is really encouraging that the Prime Minister made a mention of my work.

“This has created a huge difference in my life. I would earn around a hundred rupees daily by selling the scrap collected from the lake, but that income depended on good weather and other factors which are necessary before one rows his boat into the lake.”

Prompted by Modi’s mention, the Srinagar Municipal Corporation designated Bilal as its brand ambassador to attract attention towards the deteriorating condition of the Dal Lake in Srinagar city and other water bodies here.

The municipality has fixed a monthly honorarium of Rs 8,000 for Bilal to continue his work.

“The first ‘tankha’ (salary) was credited to my account last month. I am now able to live a better life and pursue my work more effectively. Other boys and even elderly people have been encouraged to do their bit regarding the cleaning of the lake.

“My first request to everybody living around or coming to visit the lake is not to leave behind waste either on the lake’s banks or in it.

“After one takes a pledge not to pollute the water body, the second thing is to help remove the waste that is already there,” he said.

He says it is not possible to clear everything through an individual effort.

“Carcasses of animals can also been seen floating on the lake these days. It is the same lake whose water my mother says people could drink directly in the past without any fear of getting sick,” he pointed out.

The instant recognition of his effort at the highest level has made a difference in Bilal’s life and, more than that, the teenager feels this would one day make a difference in the environment and ecology of the lake on whose banks he was born.

“I am now confident everybody, big or small, will contribute to help Wular Lake regain its lost glory. The least all of us can do is to stop polluting the water bodies around us. If our rivers and lakes die, how can Kashmir live?” asked Bilal before starting his daily journey into the lake.

(This feature is part of a special series whose purpose is to do uplifting stories of people and communities who are making a difference in creating a better India or who are seeking to preserve India’s plurality and secular culture. It is made possible by a collaboration between IANS and the Frank Islam Foundation. Sheikh Qayoom can be contacted at [email protected] )

–IANS
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Meghalaya Reserves Legalized Gambling and Sports Betting for Tourists

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PureWin Online Betting

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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