Rourkela: This city is fast turning into a safe haven for gamblers with many trying this shortcut route to become rich overnight, a report said.
Gambling and betting dens have mushroomed at several isolated pockets under the patronage of some influential persons of this city while contractors, businessmen, unemployed youths and even daily labourers try their luck putting money as per their capacities, it was learnt.
Even as such activities go on in the broad daylight, it is difficult to check the menace since the police have joined hands with the ‘ringmasters’ of such dens, locals alleged. Though locals lodge complaints with the police in this regard time and again, the latter are accused of not taking any action in this direction.
Moreover, the ringmasters, using their muscle power, manage to silence any voice raised against their illegal activity.
According to reports, the prominent centres of gambling and betting are run at Traffic Gate, Gandhi Road, Bhati Road, Malgodown, Basanti Colony, Uditnagar, Madhusudanpali, Gopabandhupali, Bandhamunda, Jhirpani, Sector-2, Jagada, Minapada, Panposh and several sectors of the city. One can see about 40 people in each of these dens from the wee hours and the stakes range from Rs 100 to Rs 20,000.
Besides, the air-conditioned rooms of some luxury hotels of the city have also turned into safe refuge for gamblers with attendance of wealthy traders and contractors, it was learnt.
These syndicates are being operated from Kolkata, sources said.
The ringmasters receive a lucky number every four minutes and a person who put his money on this number gets richer by 10 times.
The brother of a local political leader belonging to a national party also reportedly runs such a den in Daily Market area and he is one of the eight influential ringmasters in the city, the sources said. It is alleged the social evil is flourishing under the patronage of political leaders while most of the city police stations get their cuts on a regularly basis.
However, engineering students and daily labourers who want to become millionaires overnight are the biggest victims of this illegal activity.
“I have lost everything because of my obsession for making fast money,” says Bunty Mohanta of Timber Colony. At present he is struggling to meet both ends, Mohanta adds.
Inspector in-charge of Bandhamunda police station Sushanta Kumar Das said the police are conducting raids on such dens at regular intervals.
However, Plantsite police station IIC Upendra Kumar Pradhan claimed that they have not received any compliant on gambling dens. PNN
