Feature
Mela-themed images, slogans to adorn 1,600 Kumbh special rail coaches
Slogans such as “Kumbh chalo” set against images of Naga sadhus and people taking a dip atb the Prayag will feature on the coaches of the special trains the Indian Railways is set to run for the Ardh Kumbh Mela – the mega holy event that is slated to start next month and is expected to attract close to 120 million people.
The national transporter has started the massive task of vinyl wrapping 1,600 coaches of the 800 special trains here with pictures and messages about the Kumbh, along with a logo specially designed for the occasion.
Each coach of a special train meant to ferry pilgrims will have the Kumbh logo and varied images of the fair such as bare-bodied Naga sadhus smeared with ash, and scenes from the Shahi Snan (royal bath) and the evening prayer (aartis).
The recently christened Prayagraj, headquarters of the North Central Railway, is the nerve-centre of the event, which is expected to attract about 120 million people – or almost twice the population of Britain — during the holy festival at the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati rivers at the Prayag.
Pilgrims are expected arrive from all over the country and abroad – with most arriving on the special days of the Ardh Kumbh Mela, which will run from January 15 to March 4, 2019.
According to the state government, 12 million pilgrims are expected on January 15 (Makar Sankranti), 5.5 million on Januray 21 (Paush Purnima), 30 million on February 4 (Mauni Amavasya), 20 million on February 10 (Basant Panchami), 16 million on February 19 (Maghi Purnima), and 6 million on March 4 (Mahashivratri).
“While the regular train services to Allahabad will be augmented with extra coaches, there will be 800 special trains pressed into service during the nearly three-month long Kumbh fair at Prayagraj,” North Central Railways General Manager Rajeev Choudhury told this correspondent.
“The event is a massive one and the aim is to spread its message all over the country, which will help attract more tourists,” Choudhury said, adding: “Besides, the coaches will also have Uttar Pradesh tourism-related images.”
With all coaches for the special Kumbh trains being painted with mela-related pictures and messages through vinyl wrapping, the Railways is expected to propagate the Kumbh fair in a big way this time.
As far as maintenance of these coaches is concerned, the Railways will ensure superior cleanliness using mechanised cleaning. It has also outsourced the cleaning of stations to private players during the fair.
Four big enclosures to house about 10,000 pilgrims are under construction at Allahabad Junction which will have vending stalls, water booths, ticket counters, LCD TVs, passenger announcing systems, CCTVs and separate toilets blocks for men and women.
Besides, the Railways has permitted the construction of public toilets near stations on its land by Allahabad Municipal Corporation, in order to prevent open defecation in the city.
There will also be a temporary helipad operational during the mela for which construction is in progress at Hariharvan village near the city.
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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