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Modi visits Dhakeshwari temple, Indian chancery in Dhaka
Dhaka: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday visited the Dhakeshwari temple in Dhaka and offered prayers and also inaugurated the new Indian high commission chancery complex at Baridhara where he inaugurated six projects undertaken with grant-in-aid from India.
“Reaching out to Bangladesh directly. PM inaugurated 6 projects undertaken with grant in aid & interacts w/ beneficiaries,” Vikas Swarup, spokesperson of the ministry of external affairs, tweeted.
The six projects are: the India-Bangladesh Maitri Girls Hostel, Victoria College, Narail; construction of third floor of Blind Education & Rehabilitation Development Organisation, Mirpur, Dhaka; sewage treatment plant snd waste water treatment plant, Kumudini Hospital, Mirzapur, Tangail; establishment of Hindi Department, Institute of Modern Languages, University of Dhaka; recording studio, Music Department, University of Dhaka and Assistance to Department of Dance, University of Dhaka.
In the morning,Modi visited the Dhakeshwari temple at Lalbagh in the city.
“An early morning temple visit. PM @narendramodi worships at the Sree Sree Dhakeshwari Temple in Dhaka,” Swarup tweeted.The 800-year-old Sri Dhakeshwari National Temple is state-owned, giving it the distinction of being Bangladesh’s “national temple”.
After offering prayers at the temple, Modi met members of the temple committee and other senior members at the temple. Modi was offered a memento by the temple authorities. In June 2014, when Indian External Affaris Minister Sushma Swaraj visited Dhaka, she had also visited the 12th century temple.The Dhakeshwari temple was built by the Sena dynasty king Ballal Sen. The city of Dhaka derives its name from Dhakeshwari, which means goddess of Dhaka.
Modi then visited the Ramkrishna Mission at Gopibagh and was greeted by the monks at the temple. He spoke to the senior monks and posed for pictures with the saffron-robed monks of the Ramakrishna order.
“Paying my respects to Ramakrishna Paramhansa at Dhaka’s Ramakrishna Mission,” Modi tweeted.
“Last month in Kolkata. This month in Dhaka. PM visits Ramakrishna Mission in Bangladesh,” tweeted Swarup.
The Dhaka Ramakrishna Mission Math is a branch of the Belur Math, which Modi visited last month when he was in Kolkata. Modi then left to visit the the newly-constructed Indian high commission’s chancery at Baridhara.
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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