INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Hyderabad: Bookmakers are hectic capitalizing the lockdown fears
They are banking on whether or not the state federal government will enforce a fresh lockdown
Based on the current buzz, May 2 is the date of interest for the bookies.Speaking about the wagering rackets in the city, P
Radhakrishna Rao, DCP of the Commissioner's Task Force, said they were punishing the cricket betting crowd given that the IPL season began
We have actually booked six people in three cases for the IPL betting
As this is more organised, we have the ability to detect and bust the rings easily
Those banking on lockdown forecasts are, nevertheless, unorganised and it happens either as a one-to-one case or in less-organised manner,
making it difficult for us to track, trace and arrest them, said the official.Those who position bets on matches and games said considering
that the Covid-19 pandemic has forced cancellation of sporting events, bets are now being placed on the dates of a likely lockdown, the
infection rate, the death toll etc
Usually the cash put on lockdown dates has a longer-term validity
Short-term bets included infection and death counts in different cities
During the initial lockdown phase, the public was mostly placing their bets on when the restrictions would be raised
If the odds are in favour of Coronavirus, it means you are wagering that the cases will rise or the lockdown will continue, stated a punter
who positioned bets in the last few months
City authorities officials said that apart from watching on the usual punters and betting hubs during the IPL season, they watch for those
positioning bets on lockdown restrictions also
We do not know how the nature of betting has changed after the pandemic, but we will continue the crackdown against such criminal offense
Our teams are monitoring all the cyber operations, police officials stated.
