The Indian government has significantly intensified its digital “iron curtain” against illegal wagering. According to a formal disclosure by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) in the Lok Sabha, authorities have actioned or blocked 8,376 URLs related to online betting and gambling as of March 28, 2026.
The 2025 Online Gaming Act: A Hardline Shift
The primary catalyst for this aggressive takedown was the enactment of the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, which was passed by Parliament on August 21 and commenced on October 1, 2025.
This landmark legislation essentially outlawed “online money games”,a broad category that includes fantasy sports (such as Dream11), poker, rummy, and cricket betting, treating anything involving financial stakes as prohibited gaming.
The impact of the Act has been swift:
- Post-Ban Takedowns: Over 4,800 of the total 8,376 blocked URLs were removed specifically after the 2025 law came into effect.
- Severe Penalties: Offering or facilitating unlicensed money games now carries a prison term of up to three years and a fine of up to one crore rupees (₹10 million). Advertising these services can lead to two years in jail.
- Police Power: Key offences under the Act are now cognisable and non-bailable, allowing police to make arrests without a warrant.
The “Hydra” Effect: Offshore Resilience
Despite the high number of takedowns, regulators are facing a “hydra” problem where blocked sites immediately reappear under new mirror domains. Data from CUTS International reveals a paradoxical trend: offshore usage has actually risen since the ban. In Delhi NCR and Tamil Nadu, the share of players using offshore platforms jumped from roughly 68% pre-ban to over 82% in early 2026.
The study found that daily engagement has intensified, with daily access jumping from a mere 3.4% to 42.3% as players migrate from banned local apps to unregulated global operators via VPNs and private Telegram/WhatsApp groups.
The $20 Billion “Grey” Economy
The scale of this unregulated sector remains a massive economic headache for New Delhi. Industry experts estimate the offshore gaming market is now worth a conservative $20 billion, leading to an estimated annual tax evasion loss of over $4 billion, a figure that exceeds the entire revenue of the domestic regulated industry.
While the Directorate General of GST Intelligence continues to enforce a 28% GST rate on all gaming wagers and bank-level blocks on illicit transactions, operators are circumventing these hurdles by integrating local wallets like UPI through proxy resident accounts.
With the 2026 World Cup on the horizon, the Indian government is expected to deploy a multi-agency task force to further crack down on circumvention tools and offshore advertising.
