Feature
My vision for India is rapid transformation: Modi
New Delhi : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said his vision for India is rapid transformation, for which the country will have to change its laws, speed up processes and adopt technology for development.
“We cannot march through the 21st century with the administrative systems of the 19th century. There is need of collective opening of the minds, to let in new, global perspectives,” Modi said, while inaugurating the first “Transforming India” series lecture organised by NITI Aayog.
“If India is to meet the challenge of change, mere incremental progress is not enough. A metamorphosis is needed. That is why my vision for India is rapid transformation, not gradual evolution,” Modi said.
Stating that the “transformation of India cannot happen without a transformation of governance” the Prime Minister said that a transformation of governance cannot happen without a transformation in mindset and a transformation in mindset cannot happen without transformative ideas.
Modi said the younger generation in India is thinking and aspiring so differently and the government can no longer afford to remain rooted in the past.
“Development now depends on the quality of institutions and ideas… Thirty years ago, a country might have been able to look inward and find its solutions, but today countries are inter-dependent and inter-connected,” the Prime Minister said.
He said he has been holding brainstorming sessions with government officials, and the next step will be getting ideas from outside, adding that India has always been open to ideas from outside.
“This is the purpose of the Transforming India Lecture Series. It is a series which we will attend, not as individuals but as part of a team which can collectively make change happen,” he said.
The Prime Minister also requested the gathering to suggest names of experts and panellists from within and outside India.
“I also request all secretaries to government to conduct a follow up discussion in a week’s time, with the participants from their ministries. The purpose is to convert ideas that emerge in today’s session into specific action points relevant to each group. Wherever possible, I request the ministers also to participate in these sessions,” the Prime Minister said.
Tharman Shanmugaratnam, the Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore, said that skill and innovation along with technology can take India forward.
Delivering the keynote address, Shanmugaratnam stressed on empowerment of people and emphasised on strong social and political culture for a strong society.
“Education system is a big challenge in India and there is a need to increase the education budget. India has the biggest gap between talent in the top and unfulfilled expectations,” he said, while expressing disappointment that nearly 43 per cent of students leave school before finishing the upper primary level.
He also stressed on the need for trained teachers and quality training for them.
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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