Feature
Modi to inaugurate Hyderabad Metro on November 28
NEW DELHI : The Hyderabad Metro Rail will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on November 28 and will become the first metro in the country to commission the longest stretch from day one.
The 30-kilometre stretch from Miyapur to Nagole will be open for public use from November 29.
Urban Development Minister K. T. Rama Rao told reporters after a ride in metro along with some ministers, MPs, other public representatives and media persons on Saturday that the formal inauguration will take place at 2.15 p.m on Tuesday.
Modi along with Rao will travel by metro from Miyapur to Kukatpally, a distance of about one kilometre and back. Initially the services will operated be between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. but will be be extended from 5.30 a.m. to 11 p.m. depending on the traffic demand.
Rao, son of Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, described it as the most innovative project and the largest metro rail project in the world Public Private Partnership (PPP) model.
He described construction major L&T as a valued partner who did exceptionally well to give final shape to the project L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad Limited (LTMRHL) has procured all 57 trains for the project from Hyundai Rotem.
To start with, each train will be operated with 3 coaches with 330 passenger capacity in each coach. Depending on the traffic, the coaches will be increased to 6.
L&T will announce the metro fares later Saturday or on Sunday. The fares will be competitive with other metros in the country and as per the concession agreement, he said.
The minister the project was not only an engineering marvel but was also a financial innovation. A total of 18 million square feet of commercial and real estate space will be developed near metro stations over next 15 to 20 years to make the project financial viable.
The advertisement revenue will also be leveraged. The 30-kilometre stretch has 24 stations. Rama Rao said the concourse level of the station can be used by all people for crossing the road.
He said skywalks will be also be built connecting the stations directly to commercial complexes, stadiums and offices. One such skywalk is proposed Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium at Uppal.
Rama Rao also launched a smart card for travel by metro and said that in coming days, it can be used for travel by different modes of transport like bus, taxi and autorickshaws.
Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) will operate feeder services to metro stations to provide end-to-end connectivity.
TSwarai, a mobile app, will be also be launched providing integrated transport solution to the people by metro, bus, taxi and other modes. Rama Rao sought cooperation of people in keeping metro clean and maintaining it.
The 72-km elevated metro project was taken up in 2012 at a cost of Rs 14,132 crore. While the construction period for the elevated metro ended in July this year, it could not be completed due to various reasons and the developer was granted 17 month extension.
The entire project, barring 5-kilometre stretch in the Old City and about 1 kilometre stretch between Hitec city and Raidurg, is now likely to completed by the end of 2018.
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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