Feature
Women voters likely to play decisive role in upcoming Lok Sabha elections
New Delhi: Women are likely to play a decisive role in the upcoming general elections as their voting participation is likely to be higher than that of men in the 2019 polls, a Centrum report said on Monday.
According to the report, “Election 2019 – The Swing Factor”, men still outnumber women in terms of registered voters, but the actual turnout of women voters is increasing at a rate faster than that of men, and that would make the difference this time.
“Their (women) rising participation at the ballot represents a remarkable trend; by 2019, it is plausible that women’s turnout will meet – or even exceed – that of men,” said the report empahsising “she matters”.
“Rising turnout and the growing political assertiveness of Indian women are making their voices and policy preferences heard loudly across the country’s political stage. As is evident, women voters are agents of change – they vote differently than men and can affect re-election prospects,” it said.
It observed that although education and awareness are the important drivers of this trend, another major factor is peaceful polls as evident in women’s turnout in states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, where previous polls were marred by violence.
Data from the Election Commission showed that the average turnout in general elections increased significantly in 2014 and the gender gap in terms of voter turnout was also lowest in the last general elections since Independence.
“Women’s rising turnout in elections and their growing political assertiveness will again be an important swing factor in the upcoming election,” it said.
Women voters hold key role responsibility in upcoming Lok Sabha elections:
In the last few years, the concerns regarding women and their issues have gained importance and received attention from the political class, at least in slogans and speeches. Women’s issues are a key in political manifestoes, though their effectiveness is debatable.
The current NDA government also has rolled out several schemes and legislative measures during its tenure including the The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act 2016, “Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao” scheme and “Sukanya Samriddhi Account”.
These schemes, implementation and benefits actually availed by women as a result of these measures may play a role in forming the preference for women voters.
A significant yet unaccomplished demand for better political representation of women may also be a factor in the upcoming elections. The Women’s Reservation Bill, which was passed by the Rajya Sabha in 2010, still awaits clearance by the Lok Sabha, according to the report.
Another major factor for the 2019 elections, political campaign for which has started gaining momentum, would be the around 13 crore first-time voters.
The political spectrum including the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress have set their eyes on these young voters and are speaking of their needs such as employment. More than 150 million of these first-time voters played an important role in giving additional seats to the BJP in 2014 elections.
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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