Feature
Former Odisha CM Gamang quits Congress
Bhubaneswar: Veteran tribal leader and former Odisha chief minister Giridhar Gamang on Saturday resigned from the primary membership of the Congress.
He took the decision as he was “humiliated” in the party since 1999, the former union minister and nine-time Congress MP from Koraput Lok Sabha constituency said in his resignation faxed to Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
Though he maintained that he would not join any other party, his son hinted that both would join a national political party soon.
“I announce my resignation from the primary membership of the Congress with immediate effect. I have taken the decision as I have been thoroughly humiliated by the party leadership who have insulted me,” he told media persons here.
Gamang said that he wanted to be a free man although he had no intenion to quit politics.
He also said that he had not quit the Congress to join another party.
“I have done nothing wrong. I wanted to be free. There is no question of returning to the Congress once I have taken the decision,” the former chief minister said.
Giving reasons for his parting of ways with the Congress, he said he was quitting the party since it did not come to his support over his controversial vote against the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government in Parliament on April 17, 1999.
“Since 1999, I have been humiliated in public for bringing down the Vajpayee government with my vote. Till today, neither any party nor any leaders have come out with the truth and protected me from public criticism.
“I feel my loyalty to the party has turned into a liability for the party,” Gamang said.
The tribal leader said that he had voted against the then BJP-led government in deference to the whip issued by the Congress.
Even though he denied joining any political party, his elder son Sisir Gamang hinted that he along with his father would join a national party in the near future.
“We will join a national party in the near future. Everything will be clear within four-five days,” said Sishir.
Giridhar Gamang was the chief minister of Odisha from February 17, 1999 to December 6, 1999. The nine-time Congress MP has also been a four-time union minister.
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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