Feature
Pakistan Army opens fire at Indian posts in Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu: The Pakistan Army on Wednesday resorted to unprovoked firing at two places along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir, prompting the Indian Army to retaliate, officials said.
After violating ceasefire on the Line of Control by firing on Indian positions in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district on Monday morning, Pakistan Army again starting heavy shelling on Indian positions in the evening, a defence official said.
After violating the ceasefire in Poonch district earlier on Wednesday, the Pakistan Army opened fire in Naushera sector of Rajouri district.
Defence Ministry spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Manish Mehta said: “The Pakistan Army initiated indiscriminate firing of small arms, heavy automatics and Recoilless Rifles on the LoC in Naushera sector also.”
Firing started at 9.30 a.m. after which the Indian Army retaliated and the revert firing in still going on.
“Pakistan Army initiated indiscriminate firing of small arms, automatics and mortars from 6.45 p.m. onwards in Krishna Ghati sector of LoC,” Defence Ministry spokesman, Lt. Col. Manish Mehta said here.
Heavy shelling and firing exchanges between Indian and Pakistani armies took place earlier on Wednesday in Poonch district in Bhimber Gali sector.
The spokesman told media persons, “The Pakistan Army initiated indiscriminate firing of small arms automatics and 82 mm mortars in Bhimber Gali sector of the LoC.”
Heavy shelling and firing exchanges between Indian and Pakistani troops began on Monday on the LoC in Poonch as Pakistan army resorted to indiscriminate firing and shelling on Indian positions in Krishna Ghati and Mendhar sectors, an official said.
The Pakistan Army has been violating the bilateral ceasefire during the last fortnight by resorting to indiscriminate shelling and firing, especially in Poonch and Rajouri districts.
The Indian Army says it is being done by Pakistan to facilitate the infiltration of militants into the Indian side.
The ceasefire violation by Pakistan army had ended in Krishna Ghati sector at 10.10 a.m. and in the other at 8.15 a.m.
Meanwhile, a statement from the Udhampur-headquartered Northern Command of the army said that troops had foiled yet another infiltration bid in Poonch sector on the night between June 11/12 and recovered 8 rucksacks and warlike stores in a search.
Entertainment
Meghalaya Reserves Legalized Gambling and Sports Betting for Tourists
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.