Casinos in Meghalaya soon to be legalized only for tourist says minister of Meghalaya.
On Saturday, minister of Meghalaya said that casinos in Meghalaya will be legalised only for tourists. State Law and taxation minister James P.K. Sangma said Meghalaya, a popular tourist destination, will generate decent income through the legalization of gambling, online betting and gaming.
“We passed the Gaming Act and then developed the Gaming Regulations 2021. So the government will issue licenses for the game of skill and luck both online and offline,” he told reporters in the capital Shillong.
Legalization of gambling will help create jobs in addition to tourism development, he said.
“However, legalized gambling are for tourists only, not for residents of Meghalaya,” said Mr. Sangma added.
The move to enter large-scale gambling took place about 40 years after archery betting was first legalized in Meghalaya, bringing significant revenue to the Treasury. The Khasi Hills Archery Sport Association runs the famous “Shillong Teer”, an archery-based lottery. The association has 12 archery clubs, with 50 shooters shooting 30 arrows at 3:45 pm and 20 arrows at 4:45 pm each day in the second round.
Tourists or business visitors may only engage in these activities after providing documents similar to those required by banks for Know your customer (KYC).
The Gambling Legalization Process began in February 2021 and the Meghalaya Gambling Prevention Act of 1970, was repealed, effectively legalizing gambling in the state.
Meghalaya becomes the third state in the northeast to legalize gambling and online gaming, after Sikkim and Nagaland.
The movement to legalize gambling began after Mr. Sangma met with representatives of the UK Indian Business Council (UKIBC) and other UK companies to discuss the state’s online gaming and sports betting situation.
The UKIBC Gaming Industry Index ranks Meghalaya as the most gambling-friendly state in India. This index measures the extent to which each state has legalized gambling and betting based on its relationship to seven games: lottery, horse racing, sports betting, poker, rummy, casino, and fantasy sports.
Not everyone is welcome in the decision:-
But the new gambling and betting rules aren’t working well for everyone in the country.
The newly formed political organization Voice of the People said that most Meghalayans always regarded all forms of gambling as a social evil and protested the move to allow casinos and game bars to open.
Former MP and VPP President Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit said: Basaiawmoit suggested that the state consider promoting startups. Perhaps to stop the opposition from state conservatives, the state government has stipulated that the rule only allows tourists to enter casinos and play, in the hope to make state attractive.
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