Feature
CPI-M refutes Modi’s views on Left rule
New Delhi: The CPI-M on Thursday quoted official data to challenge Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s claims that West Bengal suffered economically during 34 years of Left Front rule.
An editorial in the CPI-M journal “People’s Democracy” also credited Modi’s anti-Left remarks in parliament to “the congenital anti-Communist predilections of the RSS”, the ideological parent of his BJP.
In his reply to the debate on the president’s address to parliament, Modi attacked the opposition, mainly the Communist Party of India-Marxist and the Left Front government in West Bengal it led from 1977 to 2011.
Contrary to Modi’s claims that West Bengal’s now ruling Trinamool Congress inherited a legacy of economic destruction after 34 years of Left rule, the editorial said that the opposite was the reality.
It quoted the latest National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) to say that in the last years of Left rule, West Bengal rose to the fourth position in the country in terms of industrialization.
“The great `Gujarat model’ was ranked a distant seventh,” it said.
In terms of large and medium industries, between 1991 and 2000, 2,531 new industrial units began production with a materialized investment of Rs.65,686 crore.
“This generated a direct employment of 2.98 lakhs and twice as much in indirect employment.”
The journal quoted official figures to say that the medium and small enterprises (MSEs), the backbone of industry, saw the largest expansion in West Bengal under Left Front rule.
“Between 2005 and 2011, according to the NSSO, more than 40 percent of the new manufacturing jobs created in India were generated under the Left Front rule in West Bengal alone.
“Out of the 58.7 lakh manufacturing jobs created all over India, during this period 24 lakh were in West Bengal while the `Gujarat model’ delivered only 14.9 lakh.
“In 2007-08, despite the belligerent anti-industrial campaign led by the Trinamool Congress, West Bengal … achieved a 12 percent industrial growth, the highest in the country.”
The editorial said that the during the 34 year of Left government in West Bengal, it became a state ranking first in terms of rice production and vegetable production among all states in the country.
The editorial added: “The subsequent (post-Left) destruction of the state’s economy is there for all to see today.”
Said the CPI-M journal: “Clearly, Modi, by mounting a campaign of disinformation against the Left, reflecting the congenital anti-Communist predilections of the RSS.”
This was done, it said, to appease the Trinamool Congress whose support was vital for the Modi government to legislate “anti-people, pro-foreign and domestic Indian capital economic reforms in the Rajya Sabha”.
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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