Feature
India’s victory in 1965 war ‘indisputable’: Ministers
New Delhi: Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Tuesday said that the country’s victory in the 1965 India-Pakistan war was “indisputable”.
India’s victory in the 1965 war was “indisputable”, Parrikar and Jaitley said while speaking at the inauguration of a six-day exhibition showcasing that war here.
Parrikar said the 1965 India-Pakistan war was the first “major war India won hands down”.
“I feel, as a nation, this was the first major war India won… some people raise questions if it was a stalemate… I think as a nine-year-old I was of the firm opinion that India won hands down,” Parrikar said.
“India won because of the efforts of all the names you can see and the countrymen together… the country was united,” the minister said.
He lauded the holding of the exhibition and said that “a nation that remembers its history, a nation which remembers its martyrs, is a nation which develops and is secured. I feel very confident today that the country is secure in your hands”.
The minister said he could never forget the sacrifice of Company Quartermaster Havildar Abdul Hamid, who sacrificed his life in the Battle of Asal Uttar, and was posthumously honoured with the country’s highest military decoration, the Param Vir Chakra.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley called the occasion “nostalgic”, and said India secured a decisive victory in the war.
“A huge sacrifice was made and the enemy was shown its place by demonstrating the superiority of our armed forces and their professionalism in scoring this decisive win,” said Jaitley.
“I remember, as a young school boy at that time, while our armed forces were defending our borders, the whole country used to be glued in to the radio… and then, supporting emotionally and materially the armed forces.”
A commemorative coin and commemorative stamp was also released on the occasion.
Named ‘Shauryanjali’, the exhibition will be on from September 15 to 20.
The exhibition will see the recreation of major battle scenes of the war and showcase the role of various arms and services during the war.
Covering around 50,000 square metres on Rajpath, the exhibition has pavilions that showcase the role of the three armed forces, Central Reserve Police Force, media, Prasar Bharti and International Red Cross in the war.
Also on display is the gun-mounted jeep that Company Quartermaster Havildar Abdul Hamid used to hunt down and destroy the Patton tanks of Pakistan.
Major battles being recreated at the venue are battles of Asal Uttar, Haji Pir, Burki, Dograi and Phillorah.
The culmination of the exhibition, a carnival ‘Indradhanush’, will see Sukhoi-30 fighter jets flying in ‘Missing Man’ formation along with Mi-17 V5 helicopters. It will be the first time apart from Republic Day parades that fighter jets will conduct the flypast over India Gate.
The Indian Air Force’s skydiving team ‘Akash Ganga’ will do a para-drop from the helicopters on India Gate lawns. The Indian Army helicopters will also perform a flypast.
A documentary film on the war would be shown during the exhibition.
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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