Goa launched India's first lottery that is entirely available online.

Goa launched India's first lottery that is entirely available online.

 Punters in India now have the opportunity to partake in a lottery that is totally online and authorised by the state.  The purpose of the ilottery is to bring more openness to a sector that is frequently plagued by allegations of fraudulent activity or poor administration.

 The first draw is scheduled to take place on November 24th, and ticket sales started yesterday.

 The app-based platform was approved by the Directorate of Small Savings and Lotteries in Goa, which ultimately granted Rhiti Group a licence to operate the program.  In an interview with MediaBrief, the founder of the group, Arun Pandey, stated that Great Goa Games will provide gamers with "a secure and convenient way" to play.  In February of 2023, the directorate released the rules that govern players who participate in online lottery games.

 According to what he said, "Our mission is to democratise opportunities through the technological means."

 Currently, thirteen states, including Goa, which is often referred to as "the Las Vegas of India," allow lottery games to be played.  A number of other countries have prohibited them due to worries about gambling addiction, poor management, or corruption.

 The lottery in India is in turmoil
 The chief executive officer of the Goa government, Narayan Gad, stated that the regulated games will "set a new standard in the lottery industry."  The solution that is based on technology will improve the monitoring and regulation of activities, as well as increase transparency.

 On the other hand, internet platforms are not without their share of allegations of fraud and manipulation.

 There was a time when Kerala offered an online lottery, but it was only held once a week, as stated by the technology website MediaNama.  When officials from the government discovered that many lotteries were running at the same time, they decided to withdraw the funding.  A "online, internet, and computerised lotteries-free zone" was created in Kerala as a result of the ensuing moratorium.

 In a similar manner, law enforcement in the state of Maharashtra discovered evidence that government officials and owners of online lottery sites were collaborating to organise multiple lotteries on a single day.

 In a decision that was handed down in 2015 by the Supreme Court, which upheld the ban in Kerala, the justices mentioned that ticket terminals were open to modification.  As a consequence of this, players were unable to be certain that the tickets they had purchased were from a real server.

 Adapting to the current reality
 The Pahle India Foundation (PIF), a think group that operates on a not-for-profit basis, published a white paper in 2024 stating that the lottery sector in India has simply been unable to keep up with the times due to its reliance on paper tickets and physical dealers.

 "Paper-based lotteries are prone to issues such as the loss of tickets during transportation, the sale of defective or fake tickets, and the difficult and arduous task of maintaining records of tickets (sold, unsold, and defective)," the report claimed. "These issues can be avoided by using electronic technologies."  When dealing with enormous volumes of transactions, there is a significant logistical issue that can compromise integrity and compliance, which could potentially lead to corruption.

 As an additional point of interest, the World Economic Forum has referred to India as "the next Silicon Valley."  Apparently, the high-tech culture of the country does not mesh well with the low-tech gaming applications that are available.

 A concentration on paper-based lotteries "implies that India's lottery industry does not adequately leverage the growing access to smartphones and inexpensive internet technology," according to the article.  The industry "has not yet been aligned with [the] vision of Digital India to make it more transparent, efficient, compliance-oriented, and with enhanced player protection," according to the statement.

 broader advantages, as well as the possibility of revenue
 According to the PIF, the annual revenue of the Indian lottery is anticipated to be $33 billion (£26 billion/€31 billion), with the possibility of taxes up to $12 billion.

 According to Hans India, Great Goa Games will have an emphasis on responsible gaming by providing participants with educational resources that will assist them in playing the game in a secure manner.  In addition, the online lottery would ensure transparency in its operations, enabling consumers to monitor the manner in which lottery revenues are utilised, notably for the purpose of sponsoring social programs such as education and healthcare.