Government Lottery in India

Lottery games have been a popular form of entertainment in India as far back as 1967. However, the regulations related to lotteries have changed multiple times over the years. These days, the lottery is legal in some places and not legal in others. This has led to some confusion among players on what lottery activities they can legally pursue.

Primarily, when you’re interested in playing the government lottery in India, it’s essential to research and understand the rules and regulations of the state you’re in. In this article, we will shed some light on the government lottery in India. In addition, we cover alternatives to the government lottery.

How Do Government Lotteries Work in India?

Government lotteries in India are organized and operated by the state-level governments and are regulated by designated authorities. These lotteries serve several purposes, such as generating revenue for the government, providing entertainment, and supporting various causes or projects.

The lotteries are not conducted at a federal level in India, as only some state governments agree with it. Therefore, the Indian Supreme Court ruled in the Lotteries (Regulation) Act of 1998 that each state has the right to decide whether to allow a lottery on its territory. Currently, 13 states allow lotteries and 13 governmental lottery bodies regulate lottery activities in Indian.

The 13 Indian States Where Playing the Lottery is Legal

Here is a list of states that allow lottery games and offer government lotteries for local players.

1. Kerala – The first to legalize the lottery and the most popular government lottery in the country.
2. Punjab – They offer only special bumper draws.
3. Sikkim – Daily sessions and close collaboration with other state lotteries.
4. Arunachal Pradesh – Seven different weekly draws.
5. Assam – They offer jackpots as high as ₹5 lakhs.
6. Goa – Players can play three daily sessions in Goa for as little as ₹10.
7. Madhya Pradesh – A paper lottery for Indian players in the state.
8. Maharashtra – It has been legal to play the lottery since 1969.
9. Manipur – Three draws daily with jackpot prizes of up to ₹27 lakhs.
10. Meghalaya – The government organizes a daily draw, and you can purchase tickets in local stores.
11. Mizoram – Weekly, monthly, and bumper lottery draws.
12. Nagaland – You can play the Nagaland lotteries via local retailers and the official website.
13. West Bengal State – It’s legal, but there is no active state lottery at the moment.

Important to know Indians can play the lottery online and win big jackpots. There are multiple safe lottery sites, like Lotto Agent and theLotter, where you can play many notable lotteries from around the globe; see the full list at the bottom of this page.

Kerala State Lottery

Kerala was the first to accept the legality of the lottery and organize a state lottery. The first draw occurred in 1967, meaning they have had over six decades of experience organizing these games. Today, the Kerala lottery features a unique weekly concept with daily sessions. Each lottery day has a different name to avoid confusion. Rewards and ticket prices also vary, but you can buy them for between ₹40 to ₹100, depending on the draw.

You can also play special bumper draws on six special days, which they would announce. It’s worth noting that the tickets can be purchased for at least weeks (sometimes even months) before the draw. The ticket prices for these sessions are higher, ranging from ₹100 to ₹200, but the rewards are far more generous.

Here is the overview of Kerala lottery games:

Punjab State Lottery

After Kerala, Punjab was the second state to adopt the lottery. The first session occurred in 1968. They started with special bumper sessions around the biggest holidays and later added monthly and daily draws to their roster. The good news is that the reward pool is generous, and you can win tempting prizes.

Here is an overview of the available lotteries:

Sikkim State Lottery

Sikkim State Lottery offers daily draws with jackpot prizes of up to ₹1 Crore to lottery players. They offer various lottery schemes, such as the weekly Labhlaxmi and Dear Lottery. The Labhlaxmi lottery is organized weekly at ₹10 per entry. On the other hand, the Dear Lottery costs between ₹50 and ₹202, respectively, depending on the game type.

As for special lotteries, you’ll find the bumper editions are hosted fairly often. Those are Jackpot Specials with more tempting prizes, and the unique twist is that tickets for those draws are also available in Maharashtra. Since two states are involved, the prizes are usually considerably higher than in regular sessions.

Here is the overview of the Sikkim lottery.

Arunachal Pradesh State Lottery

The Arunachal Pradesh Lottery offers 21 lottery draws a week, with 3 held each day.– at 10:55 the morning, at 3 PM, and at 7 PM. Each draw offers the same jackpot prize of ₹26.03 lakhs.

The cost per ticket is ₹6, and this is a paper lottery. To win the jackpot, one must correctly match all eight digits in the winning combination. The Arunachal Pradesh Lottery occasionally provides bumpers draws for the holiday season.

Here is the overview of the Arunachal Pradesh lottery.

Assam (Bodoland) Lotteries

The State of Assam, also known as Bodoland, has 10 lottery series with jackpot prizes of between ₹1 and ₹5 lakhs. There are also special draws that could raise the winning amount to as high as ₹10 lakhs. You can buy the tickets from local vendors all over the state.

Aside from the lottery series, special draws occur at 3 PM daily and are conducted by the Bodoland Territorial Council Secretariat.

Here is the overview of the Bodoland lottery.

Goa State Lottery

The Indian state of Goa legalized the lottery in 1995. Goa’s Directorate of State Lotteries oversees the lottery games and draws. They offer several daily lottery draws such as the Rajshree 50, Dear 50, and Rajshree Lohri.

There are also Bumper draws set at various times per year, around important holidays like Diwali and Holi.

Here is the overview of the Goa state lottery.

Madhya Pradesh State Lottery

The Madhya Pradesh State Lottery was reinstated in August 2021 under the Lotteries (Regulation) Act 1998. There are three daily lottery draws in Madhya Pradesh: MP Daily, MP Deluxe, and MP Super.

Unfortunately, this is only a paper lottery. There is yet to be an official website, and you won’t find the results published online by the organizers. Still, you can find the results in the local newspapers and publications.

Here is the overview of the Madhya Pradesh State Lottery.

Maharashtra State Lottery

The Indian state of Maharashtra launched the Maharashtra State Lottery in 1969 to raise money for good causes like health, education, local infrastructure, and child welfare. The draws occur four times a day, and each day of the week has a different name for the game.

You can also play monthly draws with more impressive prizes of about ₹25 lakh, but the rules vary slightly. There is no live-streaming of the lottery draws. However, the organizers publish the winning numbers on the official lottery website and local newspapers.

Here is the overview of the Maharashtra State lottery.

Manipur State Lottery

Manipur allows lottery draws thrice daily, with jackpot prizes of up to ₹27 lakh. The draws are from the Singam Daily Lottery, and the price of the tickets is ₹6. The draws happen at 11 AM, 3 PM, and 7 PM.

You can only buy their tickets through a licensed retailer in Manipur. The tickets are not available online either.

Here is the overview of the Manipur State lottery.

Meghalaya State Lottery

The State of Meghalaya legalized the lottery in 1982. Currently, they have a state-run lottery with two draws daily. There is a Future Daily Lottery draw at 12:35 pm and evening at 7:35 pm. The winning numbers are published on the official lottery website, but there is no live stream of the draws.

Here is the overview of the Meghalaya State Lottery.

Mizoram State Lottery

The State of Mizoram has several weekly and monthly draws, all offering a range of jackpots. You can also play the yearly Basant Panchami Bumper, which can pay as high as ₹1 Crore. The ticket prices vary, and the draws are organized by the Institutional Finance and State Lottery of Mizoram and are held from 5 PM onwards.

Authorized retailers sell the tickets, and while there is no live streaming of the draws, the results are available online right after the draw.

Here is an overview of the Mizoram State Lottery:

Nagaland State Lottery

Nagaland has a state-run lottery with eight daily draws. The lottery was established to increase the state’s revenue, impose efficient running of all lotteries, and ensure legal and safe games. You can buy the tickets at local retailers via the Nagaland Lottery online website for amounts as low as ₹6. The draws take place at Kohima, and unlike many other government lotteries here, the draws are live-streamed, so you can watch it as it happens.

The lottery has several Bumper draws per year, each with more than ₹1 crore as the main prize. Here is an overview of the Nagaland State Lottery:

West Bengal State Lottery

The West Bengal Directorate of State Lotteries manages and regulates the lottery in West Bengal. While the lottery is legal in West Bengal, there is no state lottery running here at the time of publishing. Instead, the people from West Bengal can participate in the Lottery Sambad, a big jackpot game played across several Indian states.

Also, the West Bengali people can participate in the Nagaland Lottery games. The exciting thing is that the Sambad and Nagaland lotteries have tickets available online, which makes participation much easier.

How to Play the Government Lottery in India

If you want to play a lottery game in India, you must live in a state where buying lottery tickets is legal. That means you will be restricted if your state of residence hasn’t legalized it. So, before anything else, you should check if it is legal to play where you reside.

After verifying the lottery-related laws in your state, you can follow these steps to play the government lottery in India.

The table below shows the available government lotteries grouped by states.

How to Claim Your Prize When You Win The Indian Government Lottery?

After winning a prize at any of the government lotteries in India, it’s important to check the timeframe for confirming your reward. For example, the Kerala state lottery has a timeframe of 30 days. After this period, prizes related to any unclaimed lottery tickets will be forfeited, as the organizers have the legal authority to refuse payouts if you claim too late.

The actual process of claiming a lottery prize in India can be tricky. Most governments will ask for identity confirmation and other relevant documents.

For some clarity, we share a practical example. Here is how you can claim your prize in the Kerala lottery.

1. Grab a copy of the Claim Application from the office of the Kerala State Lottery Department or any certified lottery agent.
2. Fill out the lottery win claim form with your personal information.
   

   Source: Kerala State Lottery

3. Make a copy of the winning ticket, sign it personally and add your name and address.
4. Get two photographs (passport-suitable) and take them to a notary officer to confirm their authenticity.
5. Take your PAN card, copy and sign it.
6. Submit a copy of valid means of identification like your election ID card, international passport, or driving license.
7. The last step is to provide a bank account bearing the name of the winner.
8. Your winnings will be paid into the bank account.

You can expect a similar process at all state government lotteries in India. Small prizes are typically paid within a few days, while larger prizes over ₹100,000 take longer because they require more verification and administration.

Laws of the State Lottery in India

Lottery activities in India are governed and controlled by two major laws. They are:

Fake Tickets Vs Government Lotteries in India

Indian lottery operators face a huge problem with fake tickets because the infrastructure isn’t very dynamic. For starters, the governments don’t have official sellers in different cities or locations. Instead, anyone is welcome to become a vendor. All it takes is purchasing a certain quantity of tickets, and you can resell them at a higher price to earn money.

Secondly, the lack of official vendors results in a huge risk of scamming. If people use the right technology, it’s easy to print duplicate tickets and sell them to eager customers who are too happy to find someone who sells tickets in their area.

Online Lotteries VS. Government Lotteries

As a lottery player who resides in India, you have two choices: to play the government lottery available to you in your state or sign up on an international lottery website and enjoy access to top lotteries worldwide.

Both choices have their advantages and disadvantages. Let’s begin with government lotteries. For instance, they are owned and regulated by the state. This means the lottery will be strictly supervised and fair to players. However, their prizes are lower than the lotteries you will access on international lottery websites.

Ultimately, the ideal option between playing at government lotteries in India or on lottery websites depends on personal preferences. Understanding the advantages and disadvantages of both methods can aid in making an informed decision. Here’s an overview of their respective pros and cons.

Safe with great payment methods for Indians

Government Lottery Alternatives

If you are not interested in participating in the government lottery in India, or if you are looking for more exciting games with larger jackpots, there are other options available to you. These alternatives offer advantages such as convenience, multiple payment methods, and secure and regulated platforms. You can choose from a variety of other games to play.

Here are some suggestions of lotteries to try:

	Lottery	Price (₹)	Draw Days	Jackpot Odds	Jackpot
	Lotto India	₹40	Tue, Fri	1:79,453,500	₹40 million
	US Powerball	₹300	Sun, Tue, Thu	1:292,201,338	Starts from $20 million
	US MegaMillions	₹300	Wed, Sat	1:302,575,350	Starts from $20 million
	Australia Saturday Lotto	₹120	Mon, Thu, Sat	1:8,145,060	AUD 5 million
	EuroMillions	₹250	Wed, Sat	1:139,838,160	€15 million

Make sure you’re playing with one of the legal websites that support most of the popular payment methods in India:

More details? Check our full list of online lottery sites in India so you can compare and learn more.

Final Thoughts

If you are in India and enjoy playing the lottery, you have the option of participating in the government lottery. You can choose from the lottery games available in your state of residence, and many operators offer multiple daily drawings, so you most likely play at any time of the day. The ticket prices are affordable, and the rewards are reasonably attractive. However, the risk of purchasing fake tickets and the tedious process of claiming prizes may discourage you from playing the Indian lottery.

You can also play only lotteries organized by the state you are in, but the available games are limited. That is why many people prefer reputable online lottery vendors. It is perfectly legal since the operators reside outside India. These vendors offer dozens of games from around the world, giving you plenty of options and the opportunity to discover your new favorite game.

FAQ

Is the lottery legal in India?
There are laws against lottery playing in India. However, the legislation leaves it to the discretion of the states to determine if they will legalize lottery games in their territories. As a result, 13 out of 29 states in India consider lottery playing legal.

Can you play the Indian lottery from outside India?
No, there is no option to purchase government lottery tickets from other countries. However, you can choose from a wide number of other national and international lotteries when you use online lottery sites.

How much money does the government make from the lottery?

It isn’t clear how much the government is currently making from the lottery. However, the report from the All India Federation of Lottery Trade indicates that the profits are substantial. For example, the Kerala Government earned around 7,145 crores in the year 2022. They use this money to fund projects for the general population. With the lottery becoming more popular, we expect this amount to increase in the coming years.

Which government lottery is best in India?

Most government lotteries are great, and your ideal option will depend on your playing preferences. If you want to win big, then the best choices are games with huge jackpots. Alternatively, if you value convenience, you might favor government lotteries with an online website.