Feature
Americans do yoga from East to West coast
Washington: Thousands of yoga enthusiasts spread their mats for yoga sessions across America from East to West Coast to mark the First International Day of Yoga as governors of several states issued proclamations in support.
In Washington DC, more than 1500 people from all walks of life joined the event held at Sylvan Theatre Stage on the prestigious National Mall, next to the towering National Monument, built to commemorate the first American president George Washington,
Participants wore white T shirts sporting the hashtag #YogaDay2015. The Indian Embassy presented the event in collaboration with Friends of Yoga, a group of organizations which support and promote yoga.
Thousands of people participated in the Yoga Day celebrations with fervour and enthusiasm in several US cities including Atlanta, Chicago, Houston and San Francisco.
Senior Obama administration officials joined the Indian Ambassador Arun K. Singh and Embassy officials at the Washington event. The first Indian Miss America, Nina Davuluri, also addressed the gathering.
These included Nisha Biswal, Assistant Secretary of state for South and Central Asian Affairs, Matt Nosanchuk, Director for Outreach, National Security Council, and Peter Mamacos, Health Department’s Director of Multilateral Relations.
Officials and representatives from the White House, State Department, Smithsonian Institutions, National Dance Therapy Association, World Bank, academic institutions, think tanks and other key organizations also participated.
Carrie Trybulec, Director of Gandhi Memorial Centre anchored the event.
Governors of several states issued proclamations and felicitation messages to support and commemorate the First International Day of Yoga and spread awareness about yoga.
These included Maryland’s Lawrence J. Hogan, Jr., Virginia’s Terence R. McAuliffe, Massachusetts’ Charles D. Baker, Texas’ Greg Abbott and Illinois’ Bruce Rauner.
Edwin M. Lee, Steven S. Choi, Sam Liccardo and David P. Maher, mayors of San Francisco, Irvine, San Jose, and Cambridge respectively also issued proclamations.
The lone Hindu American member of the US Congress, Tulsi Gabbard introduced a resolution in the Congress in support of the International Yoga Day.
The Washington event presented guided yoga sessions based on ‘Common Yoga Protocol’ video created by Government of India.
Yoga organizations also presented yoga-related activities to highlight various facets of yoga. Local yoga studios from Washington DC also participated in the event.
Indian flautist Deepak Ram and American Percussionist John De Kadt collaborated to present music performance during the event. Indian dance was also presented in yoga form.
The embassy will be collaborating to organize a yoga event on the Capitol Hill on Monday.
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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