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PUNTERS around the world have scented a huge business opportunity in IPL- driven online betting. And bookmakers in India are taking full advantage of the grey areas in the country’s gambling laws and giving good business to international betting sites.

Go to any bookmaking site and you’ll find sections devoted to the IPL where bets can be placed on almost everything — from wins and losses to the maximum number of sixes and boundaries.

These sites, mostly UK- based, take bets from people registering from Indian net addresses and allow only payments made through legal money transfers.

Some, like the UK- based Bet 365 ( www. bet365. com ), are even customised to accept payments in Indian rupees.

India Bet ( www. indiabet. com ), where you can garner information on betting in India — from live odds to pitch conditions and winners/ losers of tosses — explains the operation in simple terms to newcomers.

It also points to the difficulty of being in the betting game in India.

“ A large number of online bookmakers take bets from those living in India, but the main problem for Indian customers is sending money to bookmakers and getting it back again when your bets win,” the site, with the address 16, Rugby Street, London, says.

“ The difficulties of the Indian banking system mean there are only a small number of bookmakers who can properly service the Indian market.” These issues, though, haven’t

deterred the Indian punters. A customer care executive for Bet365. com, which operates from Staffordshire in the UK, said “ thousands and thousands of Indians” are logging on to the site to place bets daily. He did not divulge exact figures.

At Ladbrokes, Britain’s largest operator of online gambling, an executive assured this writer that online gambling wasn’t illegal in India and that payments could be routed through any credit card and even the Western Union.

IndiaBet. com clarified that though it doesn’t take bets, it can “ help you find out where to bet on all aspects of cricket and how best to make lots of cash from betting on cricket”. Bookies ( www. bookies. com ), which shares India Bet’s office address, also offers similar services to Indians hoping to cash in on the IPL jamboree.

Its stated objective is to be an “ odds comparison site” where you can compare the services of bookies and their prices, and the odds quoted by them, without visiting individual sites.

These are the lesser- known but popular sites. The big boys in the business, such as Ladbrokes ( www. ladbrokes. com ), William Hill ( www.williamhill.com ) and 888 Sport ( www.888sport.com ), are listed on the London Stock Exchange.

In view of the legality of betting in India, the bookmakers hasten to add a word of caution on the sites. They make it clear in their ‘ Terms & Conditions’ that when you apply for an account, you should be aware of the legality of online sports gambling in your area.

“ The question of whether it is legal to bet from India using an international bookmaker is not clear in law,” India Bet’s article points out. “ While bookmaking in India is illegal, there is no specific law which bans a customer from placing an online bet with a bookmaker based outside India.” Clearly, Indian punters are taking full advantage of this grey area.