Feature
Polling for fifth phase of LS polls underway spread over 7 seven states
New Delhi: As polling started today morning for fifth phase of polling spread across 51 constituencies in seven states till 9 am during which near about more than 12 percent voting was recorded, the Voter Turnout App data of the Election Commission (EC) showed.
West Bengal recorded the highest with 14.85 per cent followed by Jharkhand (13.46 per cent), Rajasthan (13.37 per cent), Madhya Pradesh (11.79 per cent), Bihar (11.51 per cent), Uttar Pradesh (9.82 per cent) and Jammu and Kashmir (0.80 per cent).
Voting began at 7 a.m. across the 51 Lok Sabha constituencies spread over the seven states, largely in the Hindi heartland, in the fifth of the mega seven-phase electoral exercise.
A total electorate of over 8.75 crore is eligible to exercise their franchise in this phase which covers the remaining 12 constituencies in Rajasthan; 14 in Uttar Pradesh, including the high-profile Amethi, Rae Bareli and Lucknow seats; five in Bihar; seven each in West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh; four in Jharkhand; and two in Jammu and Kashmir, including Anantnag, where the third and final phase of polling is underway.
Voting underway across 51 LS constituencies spread over 7 seven states:
In the 2014 elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had won 39 of these 51 seats — all 12 in Rajasthan, 12 of 14 in Uttar Pradesh, seven in Madhya Pradesh, three of five in Bihar, all four in Jharkhand and one of two in Jammu and Kashmir.
Among the 674 candidates in this phase, prominent ones include Congress President Rahul Gandhi from his traditional Amethi constituency where he faces Union Minister Smriti Irani, his mother and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi from neighbouring Rae Bareli, and Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh who faces actor-politician Shatrughan Sinha’s wife Poonam Sinha (Samajwadi Party) in Lucknow.
Also contesting are Union Ministers Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore – who faces fellow Olympian Krishna Poonia in Jaipur (Rural) – and Jayant Sinha Hazaribagh), former Union Minister Dinesh Trivedi (Trinamool Congress) in Barrackpore, and actress-turned-BJP leader Locket Chatterjee in Hooghly.
Polling is underway for phase 5 of Lok Sabha elections on Monday. Here are some interesting nuggets about this phase:
* 51 Lok Sabha constituencies across 7 states headed for polls
* Over 8.75 crore voters to decide fate of 674 candidates
* Over 96,000 polling booths in place for smooth conduct of polls
* Uttar Pradesh has maximum number of polling booths: 28,072
* Jammu and Kashmir has the least number of polling booths: 1,254
* Anantnag Parliamentary Constituency (PC) in Jammu & Kashmir going to polls in Phase III, Phase IV & Phase V, the only such PC in the country.
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.
Cheers and Cheers: Barzilla’s Joyful Ode to Inclusivity and Celebration
Casino Days Reveal Internal Data on Most Popular Smartphones
Meghalaya Reserves Legalized Gambling and Sports Betting for Tourists
Lockdowns in China Force Urban Communities to Defy Censorship and Vent Frustration Online
What monkey fled with a bag containing evidence in it: Read full story
IPL 20202 UPDATE: KXIP vs MI IPL Dream11 Team Prediction for Today Match, Update Point Table of all Team.
In a Live debate AAP leader Syed Asad Abbas hurls abuses to BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma.
‘India’s Most Wanted’ trailer out Arjun Kapoor on hunt of Osama-Bin-Laden
Time to move on: Sonakshi on Shatrughan’s joining Congress
