Feature
Sonia Gandhi writes to PM for special status to Andhra
Hyderabad: Congress President Sonia Gandhi has requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure that special category status is granted to Andhra Pradesh immediately.
In her letter, copies of which were shared with the media Friday by the Andhra Pradesh unit of the Congress party, she urged the prime minister to provide financial assistance to the state and support the construction of the state capital.
She said even after eight months of the division of Andhra Pradesh, the commitments made to the people of the successor state of Andhra Pradesh were not fulfilled.
Gandhi also drew Modi’s attention to her earlier letter dated June 22, 2014 on the implementation of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act. She had written it for ensuring that all commitments made to the people of the successor state of Andhra Pradesh are fulfilled in letter and spirit.
“Even after eight months of division of Andhra Pradesh, many of the investment and other commitments made by the Government of India have not been fulfilled. Special category status announced to the successor State of Andhra Pradesh, by the then prime minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on the floor of the Rajya Sabha on February 20, 2014 is (has) not yet been secured,” she wrote.
She said the resolve to fulfil all these commitments in a time-bound manner should be conveyed in the special address of the President to both the Houses of Parliament at the commencement of the budget session.
Gandhi also urged “to ensure that adequate resources are provided in the budget proposals of the Government of India, to provide financial assistance to the Government of Andhra Pradesh to overcome severe shortage of revenue and support construction of capital”.
“Adequate budget provisions need to be made to various Ministries of Government of India to enable implementation of the development package committed in the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2013,” she added.
Gandhi also urged the prime minister to make requisite allocations in the railway budget to fulfil the commitments relating to the Indian Railways.
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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