Feature
US hopes India, Pakistan will resolve issues on own
Washington: Expressing the hope that Pakistan would be a responsible stakeholder on security issues, in particular the nuclear issue, the US has said that New Delhi and Islamabad need to work on issues between them peaceably on their own.
US Secretary of State John Kerry has talked “about his concerns about tensions between India and Pakistan right now,” about various issues State Department spokesman John Kirby recalled Tuesday in response to a question at his daily press briefing.
Kerry has also talked about “our continued belief that both sides need to work these issues out peaceably and on their own,” he said.
Asked if Pakistan’s nuclear programme is safe from terrorist hands in the context of former Pakistan President Pervez Musharaff’s reported threat that Islamabad may use the nuclear weapon against India, Kirby said: “I’m certainly not going to talk about intelligence issues here.”
“But our expectation continues to be that Pakistan will be a responsible stakeholder on security issues, in particular the nuclear issue,” he said.
In response to a question about child labour and child trafficking in India, China and several other countries, Kirby said: “Obviously, this is a concern that we have around the world – the issue of child labor and certainly human trafficking.
“It’s something that we are constantly talking to our friends and partners about. It’s a significant concern,” he said.
“Our positions, our stance on them have not changed, and we’re going to continue to work this just as hard as we can.”
At the White House too, spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters in response to a question about child labour that as a general matter, President Barack Obama “believes strongly that we need to be serious about combating child trafficking.”
” And the administration has devoted significant time and consideration, and even resources, to international efforts to try to fight human trafficking.”
“This is something that the President has talked about frequently, not just with his national security staff, but in his conversations with other world leaders, and even in the context of international meetings at the United Nations,” Earnest said.
Asked if Obama had talked with Prime Minister Narendra Modi about public health issues in the context of Yoga Day, the spokesman said he was “not aware that the President had any conversations with world leaders on this topic.”
But obviously the President and the First Lady have made public health and the health of the American people a top priority of their administration,” he said.
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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