Feature
‘Look East’ to ‘Act East’, Modi government means business: Sushma
Bangkok: The Narendra Modi government has elevated India’s “Look East” policy of the last two decades to “Act East”, and resolved to move with a greater sense of priority and speed to implement the same, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said on Sunday.
Interacting with Indian business leaders here, the minister said Thailand was a valued partner for India as relations between the two nations were “deep-rooted”.
“We envisage a more vigorous and proactive engagement with this economically vibrant region of our extended neighbourhood. Thailand is an important pillar of our policy and a valued partner,” she said.
Observing that she was “delighted” to be in Thailand and meeting leading Indian business leaders, she said: “Our bilateral relations with Thailand are based on deep-rooted cultural, religious and neighbourly association between the people of our two nations.
“Our common heritage of Buddhism and the philosophy of compassion, tolerance, non-violence and peace have laid strong foundations for this relationship.”
Elaborating on how the Modi government has been developing and strengthening friendly relations with neighbours as well as other countries, Sushma Swaraj said it was engaged closely with the neighbourhood and has strengthened relations with major countries.
“Our government is working on the simple 3C mantra — commerce, culture and connectivity.
“In all these three areas, I cannot over-emphasise the importance of Thailand. We have embarked upon ambitious projects for land connectivity with Thailand through Myanmar.
“We are also working on enhancing our sea connectivity with Thailand which is a maritime neighbour of India,” she said.
The enhanced connectivity with Thailand will help Indian traders and businesses in linking up with the markets of Southeast Asia, she said.
“In particular, this would help India’s northeastern states in their development.
“The enhanced connectivity will also help in further strengthening people-to-people contacts between our two countries. It would nurture the common cultural and religious heritage between India and Thailand whose cornerstone is Buddhism,” the minister added.
Reminding the Indian business leaders as to how, according to the latest World Bank forecast, the Indian economy was poised to grow 7.5 percent this year, she said it would make it the world’s fastest growing economy during 2015.
“The fundamentals of the economy are very stable and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), credit rating agencies and other experts speak in one voice of optimism about India’s growth prospects,” she said.
“Our government came with the slogan of ‘minimum government, maximum governance’. We have strived to offer a stable, predictable and transparent policy regime, making the country an attractive destination for investors.
“The last one year of the new government has contributed to economic good governance and all-round development,” the minister 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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