Feature
Priyanka Gandhi carries shoes of journalist who collapse during Rahul political rally
Wayanad: The Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi on Thursday carried the shoes of a journalist who collapsed when her brother and party President Rahul Gandhi visited Kerala to file his nomination papers for the Lok Sabha elections.
Three media personnel fainted soon after Rahul Gandhi addressed the media after submitting his nomination papers at the office of Wayanad Collector.
A video which went viral showed Priyanka Gandhi holding one of the journalist’s shoes while Rahul Gandhi helped people carry the stretcher on which the man was taken to an ambulance.
Congress President Rahul Gandhi has an emotional link with Kerala’s Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency from where he is contesting polls besides his family bastion Amethi, party leaders said here Thursday.
An urn containing the ashes of his father and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi was brought here in 1991 and they were immersed in Papanasini, a stream connected to a famous temple dedicated to Lord Mahavishnu in picturesque Thirunelli village, Leader of Opposition in the Kerala Assembly Ramesh Chennithala recalled.
“The then chief minister K Karunakaran, myself, Mullappally Ramachandran and K C Venugopal had attended the ritual of immersing the ashes of Rajiv-ji in Papanasini,” Chennithala told media persons here.
Priyanka Gandhi carries shoes of journalist who fainted during brother’s political rally:
Rajiv Gandhi was killed in a suicide bomb blast at Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu on May 21, 1991 during an election campaign.
The Congress leaders indicated that Rahul Gandhi is likely to offer prayers at the holy place when he visits the constituency for campaigning next time.
Papanasini means destroyer of sins. According to Thirunelli temple officials, if the ashes of the dead are immersed in Papanasini, it is equivalent to doing the rituals in Gaya.
Surrounded by the Kambamala, Karimala and the Varadiga peaks, the Thirunelli temple near Mananthavady embodies traditional Kerala architecture, the Kerala Tourism department said in its website.
The shrine, situated among scenic mountains and forests, is shielded with 30 granite columns and the ground is paved with huge square pieces of granite. Gandhi on Thursday filed his nomination from Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency.
Rahul, accompanied by his sister Priyanka Gandhi and senior Congress leaders including K C Venugopal and Mukul Wasnik, submitted the papers before district collector A R Ajayakumar at the district headquarters here.
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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