Feature
Chemistry between Modi, Xi highlights friendship: Envoy
New Delhi: The “chemistry” between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping during the latter’s September visit exemplifies the friendship between the two nations and the niggling issues of boundary dispute and trade imbalance would be solved once “favourable conditions” are created, a top Chinese official said here Saturday.
Chinese envoy to India Le Yucheng, addressing a conference ‘Shaping the 21st Century: India, the US and China’, said he is “very optimistic about the future” of India-China bilateral ties.
He said during Xi’s visit to India in mid-September, everyone noticed the “chemistry” between the two leaders as Modi and the Chinese president sat on a swing “smiling and chatting” on the Sabarmati river front and also visited Mahatma Gandhi’s ashram in Ahmedabad, which showed the friendship and affection between the two leaders.
“Yes, we do have some problems, the trade imbalance and regarding the border…And both have been very constructive about it. We continue to hope that we will find a way out of the dilemma,” Le said at the conference organised by the Deccan Herald newspaper.
“We will make cooperation speak up and facilitate to solve the differences,” the envoy said, adding that there is need to create “favourable conditions for a final solution” to the two issues.
There have been frequent incidents of transgressions by the Chinese troops into the Indian side, leading to stand-offs between the two sides. Both countries have agreed to hold regular interaction between their army headquarters and field commands to maintain peace and tranquility along the 4,000-km boundary.
Giving an example of successful economic cooperation between the two, Le said Chinese e-commerce major , founded by Jack Ma, has 1.3 million Indian vendors doing business and making money.
He said that 400,000 Chinese businesspersons were purchasing Indian products through Alibaba.
Elaborating on his country’s foreign policy, Le said China “advocates peaceful settlement of disputes through dialogue” and while “China is rising it does not want hegemony”.
“China will remain a benign power and conduct foreign policy in a constructive way, and seek friendship and cooperation with all countries, including its neighbours and India,” he said.
To a question on Beijing’s assertiveness in the South and East China Seas and territorial discord with countries in the region over islands dotting the sea, the envoy said that there are “complications” that could be solved through mutual dialogue, but added that China has “undisputed sovereignty” over the islands.
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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