Feature
Tabla maestro Shankar Ghosh dead
Kolkata:Legendary tabla player Shankar Ghosh died at a private health facility here on Friday after being critically-ill for over a month due to pneumonia, cardiac problems and old age complications, hospital sources said.
Ghosh, 80, leaves behind his wife – Hindustani classical vocalist of Patiala gharana Sanjukta Ghosh – and his famed percussionist son Bickram Ghosh.
The exponent of the Farrukhabad gharana of Hindustani classical music had undergone an angioplasty following heart complications in mid December at the Medica Superspecialty Hospital, but his condition deteriorated soon after.
He was on ventilator since Wednesday. He breathed his last 9 p.m. on Friday.
“He had been suffering from pneumonia with a background of ischaemic heart disease. Old age, diabetes and hypertension had added to the problems,” a statement released by the hospital said.
Hailed as one of the all-time greats of Indian classical music, Pandit Shankar Ghosh had for over five decades regaled audiences both in India and abroad with his unique baaj (style) of playing the tabla.
Known for his innovative genius, he revolutionised both the art of tabla solo performances as well as tabla accompaniment.
He is the creator of the much acclaimed all-drum orchestra Music of the Drums – later called the Calcutta Drum Orchestra.
Ghosh trained mainly with the legendary Pandit Gyan Prakash Ghosh. Ustad Feroz Khan, Pandit Anath Nath Bose and Pandit Sudarshan Adhikari were his other teachers.
Having learnt from exponents belonging to different gharanas or schools of music, Ghosh was able to create a unique style of playing which is followed by his students, many of them prominent names of the of the music world now.
A recipient of the prestigious Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1999-2000, Ghosh had taken forward the concept of tabla ensembles — large number of tabla players showcasing their talent together.
He also received the ITC Sangeet Research Academy award and the Ustad Hafiz Ali Khan award.
At various points of his glittering career, Ghosh performed with vocalists such as Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, Pandit Omkarnath Thakur, Pandit Vinayakrao Patwardhan, Girija Devi and Akhtari Bai.
Away from India, he collaborated with artists like Greg Ellis, Pete Lockett and John Bergamo.
He toured a number of countries to play solo or with celebrated classical musicians like sitarists Pandit Ravi Shankar and Ustad Vilayat Khan and violinist Pandit V.G. Jog and earned rave reviews.
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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