Feature
Kashmir Separatists’ march casts shadow over Modi’s rally
Srinagar: Kashmiri separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani’s proposed ‘Srinagar Million March’ on November 7 has become a headache for security agencies who have been detailed for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s rally here on the same day.
Geelani has asked people to join the ‘Srinagar Million March’ in large numbers. Other separatist leaders, including Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, Muhammad Yasin Malik, Asiya Andrabi and others, have supported Geelani’s call for the march to coincide with Modi’s rally.
Director General of Police K. Rajendra Kumar reviewed the overall security situation in and around Modi’s rally venue on Sunday.
“A team of the SPG (Special Protection Group) is flying in today (Monday) to take over the security at the Sher-e-Kashmir Cricket Stadium in Srinagar,” an intelligence officer told.
Hundreds of policemen, CRPF troopers, state and central intelligence agencies are working in tandem to ensure foolproof security for the prime minister’s rally — his first in the Kashmir Valley after the Peoples Democratic Party and BJP alliance assumed power in the state on March 1.
“Dozens of CCTV cameras, sniffer dogs, mobile surveillance bunkers and drop gates are being put in place to ensure safety for the people coming to attend the November 7 public rally,” a senior police officer told.
In order to prevent the separatist leaders from disrupting Modi’s rally, the authorities have placed over 30 separatist leaders and activists under house arrest in Srinagar.
Police have also been taking some known stone-throwers into preventive custody to ensure peace in Srinagar city during the prime minister’s rally.
While Geelani continues to remain under house arrest in his uptown Hyderpora residence, Yasin Malik, Shabir Ahmad Shah, Muhammad Nayeem Khan, Showkat Ahmad Bakshi and others have also been placed under house arrest.
Chief Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed, who has been visiting different places in the Kashmir Valley recently, has called upon people to come out in large numbers to attend Modi’s rally.
Sayeed said the prime minister’s November 7 visit would be a turning point in the history of the state.
Both the PDP and the BJP have been holding meetings to ensure a respectable turnout at the rally.
BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav, who is in charge of the party’s affairs in Kashmir, held meetings with the chief minister and party leaders two days back to ensure people’s participation in Modi’s rally.
The state government is expecting that the prime minister will announce an all inclusive 90,000 crore economic package for the state that would include relief for the victims of the unprecedented floods in 2014.
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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