IMPHAL, March 16 — Cash strapped Manipur Government has given the green signal to a Mumbai based firm MWC Market Service Pvt Ltd to start on-line lottery to improve the financial situation of the state, the Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh told the state assembly during the discussion on the Manipur state on-line lottery (Regulation) Rules, 2002 which was laid on the Table of the House on December 30, 2002.
The chief minister who also holds the finance portfolio while replying to questions raised by opposition MLAs M Nilachandra Singh, Salam Ibohal Singh, L Ibomcha Singh and BD Behring said that the lottery will yield Rs 717 crore and the contract has been award for ten years. An agreement to this effect had already been signed between the state government and representatives of the MWC Market Service Pvt Ltd recently.
Agreement arrived at between the Government and MWC Market Service also states that the firm will adhere to the Lottery Act 1998 Section 4 and take responsibility for clearance from the Home Ministry and solving pending cases on their own, the chief minister said. It is expected to kick off by July this year at its Imphal office as per the new rule of the deal. Once the lottery kicks off the State Government stands to earn huge revenue. In the first year, the State Government will receive Rs 35 crore and an additional Rs 5 crore as revenue from the agency. In the last year of the contract, that is in the tenth year, the State Government will receive Rs 105 crore from the agency.
There will be an increment in each successive year. The Union Home Ministry had earlier agreed to let the fund generated from lottery stay with the State account. So far, the Manipur government alone earned Rs 35 crore net income from the On-Line lottery though, no tender has been made. As a part of the resource mobilisation drive, the state government is targeting to earn Rs 707 crore in the ten years, the Manipur chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh said.