One of India’s most populous states mulls legalizing online sports betting and gaming to tackle the financial crisis arising from the coronavirus pandemic.
According to recent reports from local news outlets, the government of the state of Maharashtra has been reviewing a report on the economic impact of the legalization of digital sports wagering and online gaming.
State lawmakers first mooted the idea a few months ago when the coronavirus crisis began to eat into Maharashtra’s budget. The state, which is home to more than 100 million people, is estimated to have lost more than Rs610 billion (approx. $8.3 billion) as of the end of August due to the worst health crisis that has gripped the world in many years.
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The Maharashtra assembled a task force to assess the legal aspects of introducing online betting and gaming in the state and compile a feasibility report, which lawmakers are now reviewing.
A bureaucrat familiar with the ongoing discussions on the matter told local news outlets that while it would be “too premature to comment on the report”, he could confirm the government is considering the legalization of sports betting and other forms of online gambling as a source for additional revenue.
The bureaucrat also said that the government will take note of what the public says about bringing legal betting and gaming to the state and that while there is no doubt the practices “will help us raise funds to tackle the financial crisis […] there may be massive anger among people.”
Maharashtra Looking at How Other States Are Handling Legal Gambling
It is also understood that the task force looked at how the state of Sikkim has legalized online gambling when compiling its report. Online sports betting is considered legal in Sikkim. However, in reality, bettors can only place wagers via betting terminals in retail shops around the state.
Sikkim legislators have later introduced even tighter rules and have restricted sports betting only to out-of-state visitors.
The Maharashtra task force also reviewed the recommendations made by a specially appointed three-member committee headed by former Indian Chief Justice R.M. Lodha. The committee was created in 2015 to study cricket, India’s most popular sport, as well as the regulatory body tasked with overseeing it, the Board of Control for Cricket in India.
The study was conducted after a massive betting scandal that swept across Indian cricket in 2013. According to the recommendations in the report compiled by the Lodha-led panel, illegal sports betting “can be effectively dealt with by providing a legal framework” that should serve both cricket and Indian economy.
The committee also encouraged Indian lawmakers to legalize cricket betting at a national level and create a framework for licensing interested betting operators.
Gambling regulations in India vary from state to state. While the state of Andhra Pradesh, home to 50 million people, recently proposed legislation that seeks to tighten the penalties for those caught gambling online, Karnataka allowed the Bangalore Turf Club to offer online wagering.
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