‘Opportunity to make some money when matka is shut’

Across villages and towns in Goa, there are familiar faces doing unfamiliar jobs. With the lockdown pushing many out of business, matka bookies of the state have turned into fruit and vegetable vendors with some even selling eggs Matka, though illegal and despite stray raids, is big business in Goa. There are no official numbers, but the business is understood to have a daily turnover of Rs 10-12 crore with approximately 10,000 bookies accepting bets across the state.Starting with the ‘Janata Curfew’ announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 22, matka business has come to a standstill. People cannot step out of their houses and place bets, bookies can’t go door-to-door and online betting doesn’t work, simply because matka is largely about payments in cash.So, the bookies who were earlier accepting bets on behalf of their agents have now got into selling fruits and vegetables for a living.“If a month ago I had tried to set-up a vegetable cart here, I would have been stopped. I am known in this locality by my customers, so most of them back me and buy stuff from here,” said one bookie.This business, according to the bookie, is hassle free. Matka is illegal and needs ‘protection’ from the authorities. For the vegetable cart, only the landlord needs to be paid for occupying the space.Another bookie, not too far away, has started selling eggs. He does not have a fixed spot and keeps shifting, unlike matka business where being at the same spot is a must.“For matka, you have to be at the same spot, otherwise you lose customers. This business is an opportunity for me to make some money when matka is shut. You move around with trays of eggs, and since there is demand, nobody minds paying a slightly higher price,” he said.Once the lockdown is over and things slowly get back to normal, most will return to their old jobs. For bookies, there is no investment, and returns are guaranteed.“Matka has been stopped due to curbs in flow of hard cash. Payments for predicting the correct number has to be made in cash and on the spot. With no inter-state transport, all channels of cash flow are affected, otherwise gamblers would have continued to bet through phone-calls,” said another bookie.Despite intervention from the court, matka business has continued to flourish in Goa. In 2017, the high court had pulled up the crime branch for its slow progress in investigating the illegal business and directed it to submit a status report within 24 hours.But nothing much has changed. The lockdown has done what the police couldn’t manage all these years. But once the lockdown is over, almost certainly it will be business as usual.