Feature
“With all, development for all”: President
New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee while addressing the joint session of the two houses of Parliament said that our government is with all and wants development for all. He further said that, “My government is doing great work for the poor, oppressed and dispossessed. The President said that our government opened 26 crore Jan Dhan accounts for people so that they can get the loans easily. Mukherjee on Tuesday also said the government has provided over Rs 2 lakh crore for the development and refinancing of micro entrepreneurial units under the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana. On the first day of the Budget Session, the President said that core of the government’s policies was welfare of the poor, Dalits, farmers, labourers and the youth.
“Social and economic equality for deprived sections is the first promise of our constitution, our government is committed to fulfil it,” Mukherjee said. He also hailed the government for its Pradhan Mantri YUVA Yojana launched for promoting entrepreneurship education and training for seven lakh students. National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme has been launched with a budget outlay of Rs 10,000 crore, he said. “My government salutes the strength of janashakti (people’s power) and pledges to constructively utilise it in Rashtra Nirman (nation building),” Mukherjee added.
“A favourable monsoon supplemented by farmer-oriented schemes has increased the acreage and yield of most Kharif crops,” Mukherjee said here. “The sown area in the current Rabi season has shown six per cent increase in comparison to last year,” Mukherjee said. The President also said: “My Government has taken various steps to transform the lives of our farmers.” “Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana expanded ambit of risk-coverage, doubled sum insured and facilitated lowest-ever premium,” he said. “Three crore Kisan Credit Cards will be converted into Rupay debit cards soon,” Mukherjee added. President also said that the government assures healthcare for all. Here Mukherjee also said that India gave ‘fitting reply’ with surgical strike.
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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