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Voters queue up in first phase of Bihar assembly polls

Published

9 years ago

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Patna: Long queues formed outside polling centres on Monday as ballotting took place in the first phase of Bihar’s staggered assembly election in 49 constituencies, including some which are Maoist-affected.

Around 12 to 15 percent polling was recorded till 10 a.m. in the 49 assembly seats spread across 10 districts, officials said.

Polling is likely to pick up by noon, additional Chief Electoral Officer R. Lakshaman said.

About 13.5 million voters are eligible to decide the political fate of 583 candidates in the fray.

Some of the voters turned up at the polling booth early in the morning when polling began at 7 a.m. Voters at most of the polling booths said that they would vote for development and growth of the state.

“I have decided to vote for development as it is the only agenda that has attracted me,” said Suman Kumar, a voter in Bhagalpur district.

Another voter Giridhari Yadav in Khagaria district said he will vote for the grand alliance of Nitish Kumar, who he said had worked hard to develop Bihar.

“Why should I vote for the BJP led NDA when we have tested Nitish Kumar as chief minister who developed the state by constructing roads, provided electricity and set up schools and hospitals in rural areas. (BJP led by Prime Minister Narendra) Modi is yet to fulfill promises…,” he said.

Voters in Banka, Jamui, Nawada districts too said they will to vote for development.

Bihar police chief P.K. thakur told the media here that so far polling was peaceful, with no report of violence barring minor clashes between rivals.

Samastipur, Begusarai, Khagaria, Bhagalpur, Banka, Munger, Lakhisarai, Sheikhpura, Nawada and Jamui districts are voting in the first phase.

The next rounds of polling for the 243-seat assembly will be held on October 26 and 28, and Nov 1 and 5. Counting of votes will be on November 8.

Poverty-stricken Jamui, Banka and Bhagalpur are among the 10 districts, which are known for high rates of migration outside the state in search of livelihood.

Stray incidents of clashes were reported between rival groups. At some places, the electronic voting machines malfunctioned. Apart from that, it was a smooth exercise in a state earlier notorious for election-related violence.

Officials said that voters in over a dozen villages in Samastipur, Bhagalpur, Jamui and Banka boycotted the polls and shouted slogans against the lack of development.

The Election Commission has reduced polling hours in Maoist-hit areas to 3 p.m.

The outlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist, earlier this month, vowed to intensify attacks to disrupt the election process and enforce its boycott of the polls.

Drones will be used for the first time for surveillance along with four helicopters and about 1.20 lakh security officials, including 87,600 central paramilitary personnel, would be deployed at 13,212 polling booths, officials said.

The heavyweights in the fray in this phase include state LJP president Pashupati Kumar Paras, younger brother of LJP chief and union minister Ram Vilas Paswan, BJP ally Hindustani Awam Morcha state president Shakuni Choudhary, senior Congress leader and former state assembly speaker Sadanand Singh and Vijay Kumar Choudhary, a Bihar minister who is considered close to Nitish Kumar.

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Meghalaya Reserves Legalized Gambling and Sports Betting for Tourists

Published

2 years ago

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June 25, 2022

By

PureWin Online Betting

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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