Feature
Leaders geared-up to discuss strategy during Monsoon Session of Parliament
New Delhi: Amid indications that they will join hands in an election to elect the new Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman, opposition parties will meet here on Monday evening to discuss their strategy for the Monsoon Session of Parliament beginning Wednesday.
The meeting, convened by Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad and expected to be attended by leaders from major opposition parties, will discuss the strategy for the monsoon session besides the issue of election of Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman following retirement of P. J. Kurien on July 1.
There have been indications that the government may not hold the election in the monsoon session while the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is yet to make its stance clear.
The Constitution does not specify a time frame for the election and there have been precedents of a new Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman being chosen a few months after the incumbent retired.
The Opposition appears to have an edge in an election but much would depend on the stance of parties such as the Telangana Rashtra Samithi, AIADMK, the Biju Janata Dal and the YSR Congress.
There have been indications that Congress could back an opposition candidate for the post. While no party has said that it wants to put up a candidate, there is speculation that a joint nominee could belong to the Trinamool Congress or the Nationalist Congress Party.
Opposition leaders join hands to discuss strategy of Parliament’s Monsoon Session:
The chances of a consensus on the name of an opposition candidate are also seen as remote as the post has gone to the members of the ruling party in the recent past and there has been some speculation that in case of a contest, the BJP-led NDA could field Shiromani Akali Dal member Naresh Gujral as its candidate.
Meanwhile, the Opposition is expected to take on the government on a range of issues during the session including mob lynchings, bank frauds, situation of farmers and atrocities against women.
Before the meeting of opposition parties in the evening, Congress leaders will meet for a “strategy session” at the residence of UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi.
The meeting would be attended by party President Rahul Gandhi and senior leaders including Azad, Mallikurjan Kharge, Anand Sharma and A. K. Antony.
The monsoon session will have 18 sittings and will conclude on August 10.
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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