Feature
Indian Air Force inducts 4 multi mission Chinook helicopters made by US
Chandigarh: Air Chief Marshal B.S. Dhanoa on Monday formally inducted four US-made advanced multi-mission all-weather Chinook helicopters at Indian Air Force Station 12 Wing here.
Two hangars and logistics facilities were created here for the Chinook helicopters.
Each Chinook helicopter, manufactured by US aerospace major Boeing, has a payload capacity of about 10 tonne which is a major boost to India’s strategic airlift capability.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) received its first CH-47F (I) Chinook on February 10 at the Mundra port in Gujarat.
The Chinook will be used to move troops, artillery, ammunition, supplies and equipment on the battlefield. Besides, they can be used for medical evacuation.
“Our country faces a multitude of security challenges and we require a vertical-airlift capability for a very diversified terrain. The Chinook will give the IAF a quantum leap to transport cargo to precarious high-altitude locations,” Dhanoa told reporters after the induction ceremony.
He said the Chinooks were procured with India specific enhancements to increase their flexibility for heli-lift operations like search, rescue operations and air ambulance.
The aircraft is all-weather capable and state-of-the-art night vision goggles will permit all operations even at night, he informed.
US-made advanced multi-mission all-weather Chinook helicopters inducted in IAF:
“Although we have been operating the medium lift Mi-17 and heavy lift Mi-26 helicopters, the Chinook, with its operating ceiling of 20,000 feet, will redefine heli-lift not only in operations like inter-valley transport of troops, airlifting artillery guns and heavy under slung loads for the Border Roads Organisation, but also for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief to far-flung crisis hit areas,” he said.
A confident Dhanoa added that the IAF’s expertise would enable it to exploit the machine’s potential in a manner that will make it a game changer in heli-lift operations.
India had signed a deal with the US in September 2015 for 15 Chinook helicopters at an outlay of Rs 8,845 crore.
Salil Gupte, India head of Boeing, said the Chinooks were delivered ahead of the scheduled time.
The IAF had sent 15 pilots and 15 engineers to the US in 2018 for training on the Chinooks.
According to Boeing, the Chinook had an unsurpassed ability to deliver heavy payloads to high altitudes, and is eminently suitable for operations in the high Himalayas.
The aircraft was battle-tested in diverse, extreme conditions throughout the world, and had proven capability to operate in the wide range of conditions that typify the Indian subcontinent, it added.
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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