Delhi CBD in Connaught Place
Gambling in India is heavily restricted, although there is extensive illegal gambling throughout the country. The Indian gambling market is estimated to be worth US$60 billion per year, of which about half is illegally bet.[1]
Only two states allow casino gambling, Goa and Sikkim.[2] There is one casino in Sikkim and 12 in Goa, of which seven are land based and five are floating casinos that operate on the Mandovi River.
Other than lotteries, legal gambling in India is limited to betting on horse racing.
Online gambling is in its infancy in India, but Sikkim plans to offer three online gambling licences in 2010.[3] Sikkim also permits an online lottery, operated by Playwin, which takes bets from players throughout India. It is expected that other states will follow Sikkim shortly, thereby opening up a major online gambling market throughout India.
Sports
A 2008 Indian Premier League Twenty20 cricket match being played between the Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders
India's official national sport is field hockey, administered by the Indian Hockey Federation. The Indian field hockey team won the 1975 Men's Hockey World Cup and 8 gold, 1 silver and 2 bronze medals at the Olympic games. However, cricket is the most popular sport; the India national cricket team won the 1983 Cricket World Cup and the 2007 ICC World Twenty20, and shared the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy with Sri Lanka. Cricket in India is administered by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, and domestic competitions include the Ranji Trophy, the Duleep Trophy, the Deodhar Trophy, the Irani Trophy and the Challenger Series. In addition Indian cricket league and Indian premier league organise Twenty20 competitions.
Tennis has become increasingly popular, owing to the victories of the India Davis Cup team. Association football is also a popular sport in northeast India, West Bengal, Goa and Kerala. The Indian national football team has won the South Asian Football Federation Cup several times. Chess, commonly held to have originated in India, is also gaining popularity with the rise in the number of Indian Grandmasters. Traditional sports include kabaddi, kho kho, and gilli-danda, which are played nationwide. India is also home to the ancient martial arts, Kalarippayattu and Varma Kalai.
The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and the Arjuna Award are India's highest awards for achievements in sports, while the Dronacharya Award is awarded for excellence in coaching. India hosted or co-hosted the 1951 and the 1982 Asian Games, the 1987 and 1996 Cricket World Cup. It has also successfully hosted the Men's Field-hockey World Cup 2010 and is scheduled to host the 2010 Commonwealth Games and later the 2011 Cricket World Cup.
Notes
- ^ Thompson, James (27 October 2009). "Betfair and William Hill target India". The Indepenent.
- ^ Patil, Ajit (28 May 2009). "Casinos in India". India Bet.
- ^ Sanjay, Roy (27 October 2009). "Indian online gambling market set to open up". India Bet.
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