Feature
Respect for women to be inculcated in UP school boys
With the aim to teach boys in Uttar Pradesh that they should respect a woman, the Yogi Adityanath government has gone in for a paradigm shift in the syllabus for basic and secondary education.
The plan is being implemented under ‘Mission Shakti’ which is aimed to give more importance and empower the ‘half-population’. The state government is moving towards making women self-reliant, confident, and ensuring their safety and respect.
In the first phase of the campaign till October 25, the higher education department has created awareness among 5,57,883 students in 6,349 colleges through webinar, awareness programmes and competitions.
A micro plan is being prepared for the second phase of the campaign under which a dedicated portal will be launched and information about the programmes being run by all the departments will be uploaded on it. The portal will provide all the necessary information and schemes being run for women and girls.
Moreover, the maximum participation of women in public welfare schemes will be ensured. Imparting skill development training for increasing employment opportunities will also be emphasised.
The decision to include women empowerment in the curriculum of Basic Education and Secondary Education has been hailed by parents.
Social worker Varsha Verma said that this is an important decision of the Yogi government which will change the thinking of boys. In the culture of India where Goddess ‘Shakti’ is worshipped, there will be real respect for girls. With this decision, the seeds of moral values will be sown in the students. The syllabus will inform about the life of great women personalities of India, success stories, gender equality and security-related issues.
Under Mission Shakti, awareness programmes were organised in various colleges of Uttar Pradesh for nine days. The programmes were organised in 6,349 colleges in which 5,57,383 girls and boys, and 1,46,177 teachers took an oath to ensure women’s safety and respect.
Meanwhile, 4,46,355 female students from 3,007 colleges were given training in martial arts through both online and offline workshops.
Apart from this, 2,57,407 girls participated in Essay, Poster, Slogan and Quiz competitions. 2,42,036 girl students and 14,364 teachers from 2,731 colleges participated in physical health enhancement and nutrition awareness programmes. In a webinar related to gender equality, domestic violence protection, POCSO Act, women’s helpline, 1,783 experts in 2,986 colleges informed 3,13,996 students about these issues.
Anshumali Sharma, Special Officer and State Liaison Officer, NSS, Department of Higher Education, said that under Mission Shakti, programmes were organized by the Higher Education Department on issues related to gender equality, protection from domestic violence, POCSO and women helpline in various colleges.
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.