Feature
Goswami steps down as home secretary, Goyal replaces him
New Delhi: Home Secretary Anil Goswami resigned Wednesday after he was told by the government to put in his papers over his alleged role in trying to stall the arrest of former Congress minister Matang Sinh in the multi-crore-rupee Saradha scam. The government appointed L.C. Goyal as his replacement a few hours later.
Official sources said Goswami handed over his resignation to Home Minister Rajnath Singh. It was subsequently accepted by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC).
“The home secretary has resigned. He met the home minister and submitted his resignation,” said an official who did not want to be identified.
Goswami is the third senior official who had to resign or whose services were curtailed by the government over the past few weeks.
Sujatha Singh was removed as foreign secretary last week while the term of Avinash Chander as chief of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) was curtailed last month.
K. Durga Prasad was apparently removed as chief of the Special Protection Group (SPG) during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Nepal and he has now been posted in the Central Reserve Police Force.
Sources said Goswami was summoned by Rajnath Singh earlier in the day.
He is learnt to have explained his position following the controversy over his calls to Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officials dealing with the Saradha chit fund scam case.
The sources said there have been top-level consultations in the government over the issue.
Rajnath Singh is also learnt to have spoken to CBI director Anil Sinha.
Goswami, an IAS officer of Jammu and Kashmir cadre, was appointed home secretary during the term of the previous United Progressive Alliance government.
There were reports that he had spoken to CBI officers following their decision to arrest Matang Sinh.
Matang Sinh, who was minister of state in the P.V. Narasimha Rao government in the 1990s, was arrested Jan 31 by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in Kolkata on charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating and misappropriation of funds in the Saradha scam.
The government issued a release Wednesday night saying Goyal was the new home secretary and his term will be for two years.
“The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of L.C. Goyal, IAS, secretary, department of rural development, as home secretary for a period of two years from the date of taking over charge vice Anil Goswami,” the release said.
It also said the ACC has also approved request of Goswami for “voluntarily retiring” from service with immediate effect by waiving the notice period.
The release said the term of Goswami as home secretary stands curtailed with immediate effect.
Goyal is an IAS officer of 1979 batch.
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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