The Government lottery system has been prevalent in India for decades and is considered as one of the best forms of playing lottery in the country. In a lottery system, you purchase tickets that contain a series of numbers, which you tally with the winning numbers drawn at a later date. If you hold all the numbers, you are declared as the winner. Often, there are rewards for partial number wins, too.
Now, in this age of tech, you might think that there is access to government lottery online. That was the case till the time Playwin Lottery operated. It was a lottery licensed by the government of Sikkim and operated by Pan India Network, but was forced to resign its operation in 2019 after facing financial struggles.
In India, lotteries are run by the respective state governments. Irrespective of that, you cannot buy tickets online, but there are vendors who sell paper lotteries. At present, they are legal only in 13 states out of 28. Each state, where the lottery system is legalised, has its own regulations surrounding it. They are normally held on a weekly or monthly basis and operated by state-run organisations.
Government lottery in India is hugely popular due to its high payouts. With a chance of winning millions of rupees at stake, it can be hard to look away.
What are the Alternatives to Government Lottery Online?
As it is not possible to play government lottery online, you should only buy paper lottery tickets from licensed vendors in person.
Alternatively, you can play international lotteries that operate legally in the country. Sources such as Lottoland, LotteryWorld and LottoSmile India serve as great alternatives to government lotteries, as they offer tremendous, life-changing payouts to winners.
Lottery World
Lottery World offers you 25 different lotteries to play, which include the likes of SuperEnaLotto, Powerball, Lotto India, UK Lottery and Mega-Sena. The company has been around for a long time and continues to grow by adding more loyal patrons each day.
You can play some of the world's largest jackpots using your phone or computer. You also get the most convenient transaction options including UPI and RuPay for withdrawal and deposit purposes. In addition to lotteries, they also offer scratch cards, live casino games and slots.
LottoSmile
LottoSmile India is a lottery ticket service, which gives you the chance to play the biggest lottery draws from different countries. They are one of the experienced service providers, having started their operations in 2002, and carry a stellar reputation among gamblers.
Here, you can find more than 45 lottery gambling options such as New Zealand Lotto, Austria Lotto, Texas Lotto, Japan Loto 6, and Romania Joker. They also offer an array of playing options including subscriptions, multi-draws, syndicates and bundles.
Lottoland
Lottoland Asia, which was established in 2013, allows you to bet on some of the most popular European lotteries, including EuroMillions and EuroJackpot. Then, there are Powerball and MegaMillions from the United States. You can also find lotteries from Poland and Ireland and four lotteries from Australia to take your fancy.
Licensed and regulated by the Government of Gibraltar, Lottoland offers you a lottery gaming experience that you might not get while playing offline. Some of the other jackpot lotteries that you can participate in include Malamaal Daily, Gullak Gold and Go. Apart from lotteries, you can also participate in roulette and casino games as well as scratch cards.
Which States Have a Government State Lottery?
Currently, online lotteries are legal in 13 out of 28 Indian states.
The legal state lotteries are:
- Kerala
- Punjab
- Sikkim
- Arunachal Pradesh
- Assam
- Goa
- Madhya Pradesh
- Maharashtra
- Manipur
- Meghalaya
- Mizoram
- Nagaland
- West Bengal
Here are some of the reasons why you should consider playing online lottery as compared to offline:
No waiting lines: Waiting lines at a lottery store can be long if a popular lottery is up for grabs, and it usually is not a fun experience. With online lotteries, you are saved the trouble of standing in queues, as a reliable source will help you secure your ticket in your account.
No loss of tickets: Since your ticket gets saved in your account, there is no risk of losing it. To access it, all you have to do is register on the lottery website using your username and password.
Great convenience: Whether you want to buy a single ticket or multiple ones, or even play in syndicates, it is all possible with online lottery. Websites like Lottoland and Lottofy offer immense convenience in this regard, as you will not miss a single draw of your lottery.
Secure payments: Online lottery stores partner with top security providers to ensure that your personal information is secure at all times. Moreover, they offer multiple payment methods that allow you to seamlessly carry out transactions at any time and form anywhere.
Government Lottery in India Online
By now you must have learnt that India does not have an active government lottery online since Playwin’s insolvency and ultimate retraction. If you wish to play a government lottery in one of the legal states mentioned above, you will have to visit a vendor to purchase tickets of your favourite lottery.
Using these tickets, you can participate in the state lottery. Be rest assured, that they come with high security measures that keep all your personal information secure, at the same time giving you the chance to earn millions in winnings.
Usually, the state lotteries are run by the financial department. The dates of the draws are planned in advance and information about the draws is made available to the public in due time.
Once the winners are declared, the government gives rewards to top tier winners, whereas lower tier prizes are given by government-approved ticket sellers. If you are one of the winners, you will have to send your ticket and complementary documents to claim the prize.
Purchasing Government Lottery Tickets
In India, you can buy a government lottery offline. There are government-approved vendors that deal in selling these tickets. If you are interested in buying a government lottery ticket, you must visit a vendor that operates within your state.
If you are interested in playing international lottery, you can purchase a ticket online by following the below steps:
- Visit the website of an online lottery site, such as Lottosmile, and sign up with them
- Once you become a member, pick your favourite lottery draw that you wish to play
- The next step is to select your lucky numbers
- Once done, make the purchase of your lottery ticket and check out
- Now, wait for the draw results
Whether you buy tickets online or offline, it is important to do it responsibly.
Playwin Lottery – The Only Online Government Lottery
Playwin was a Pan India Network-operated online government lottery source, which ran operations between 2001 and 2019, before being shut down due to rising debts. It was also India’s only online government lottery website and it grew substantially, offering people the chance to play their favourite lotteries.
Despite offering just thirteen lottery games, Playwin was largely popular in India. As time progressed, it cut down its offerings to five lotto games and later, four before being shut down.
The four games it offered during its final years are:
- Jaldi 5 Lotto: In this game, you would buy a ticket and select five winning numbers between 01 and 36, with the draw results declared every Friday. The jackpot could win you up to INR 5 lakh.
- Jaldi 5 Double Lotto: Jaldi 5 Double Lotto could bring the winner a jackpot of INR 10 lakh. Similar to Jaldi 5 Lotto, you would be required to select five winning numbers between 01 and 36, with the results declared on every Wednesday.
- Thunderball: In Thunderball, you would select five standard numbers between 01 and 42 as well as a Thunderball number between 01 and 15. The jackpot would start at INR 1.05 crore, with the winners declared every Tuesday.
- Saturday Super Lotto: The result for this game would be announced every Saturday with INR 2.05 crores at stake as jackpot. However, to win the top prize, you must select six correct numbers.
Indian State Lotteries in 2024
Indian state lotteries are reliable and come with massive payouts and are claimed as life-changing by past winners. An auto driver from Kerala, Anoop B, played the state government’s Onam bumper lottery and ended up winning the first prize of INR 25 crore. A second prize winner from Kottayam won INR 5 crore. Anoop, who had tried opening a roadside eatery before winning the jackpot, hopes to open his own hotel in his city.
Another auto driver from Kerala, Jayapalan P R, won INR 12 crores in 2021. After winning the lottery, he aimed at paying off his debts and providing a good education to his children and hoped to financially support his siblings.
If you are interested in playing state government lottery in India, learning about their weekly draws and bumper draws will ensure that you do not miss out on them.
Here’s how the frequency of draws looks like for different lotteries:
| Lottery | Weekly Draws | Bumper Draws |
| Arunachal Pradesh State Lottery | 21 | 0 |
| Assam State Lottery | 21 | 0 |
| Goa State Lottery | 35 | 1 |
| Kerala State Lottery | 6 | 6 |
| Madhya Pradesh State Lottery | 0 | 0 |
| Maharashtra State Lottery | 42 | 3 |
| Manipur State Lottery | 28 | 0 |
| Meghalaya State Lottery | 21 | 0 |
| Mizoram State Lottery | 21 | 1 |
| Nagaland State Lottery | 21 | 4 |
| Punjab State Lottery | 0 | 5 |
| Sikkim State Lottery | 7 | 14 |
| West Bengal State Lottery | 7 | 2 |
Government Lottery Games
In India, out of 28 states, 13 have legalised lotteries. The five most popular lotteries in the country are the Mizoram State Lottery, the Maharashtra State Lottery, the Sikkim State Lottery, the Nagaland State Lottery, and the Bengal State Lottery. Each of these lotteries has its own set guidelines that are limited to their respective states.
The prize structure of lotteries, too, vary from state to state. Below are the details about the distribution of prizes for different state lotteries:
| Lottery | Min Payout | Max Payout |
| Arunachal Pradesh State Lottery | INR 120 | INR 26.03 lakhs |
| Assam State Lottery | INR 50 | INR 5 lakhs |
| Goa State Lottery | INR 50 | INR 20 lakhs |
| Kerala State Lottery | INR 50 | INR 7 crores |
| Madhya Pradesh State Lottery | INR 50 | INR 16 crores |
| Maharashtra State Lottery | INR 100 | INR 1 crore |
| Manipur State Lottery | INR 500 | INR 27 lakhs |
| Meghalaya State Lottery | N/A | N/A |
| Mizoram State Lottery | INR 100 | INR 10 lakhs |
| Nagaland State Lottery | INR 100 | INR 99 lakhs |
| Punjab State Lottery | INR 50 | INR 5.25 crore |
| Sikkim State Lottery | INR 20 | INR 19 lakhs |
| West Bengal State Lottery | INR 20 | INR 5.6 lakhs + new car |
History of Indian Government Lottery
The history books show the first legal document citing lotteries in 1867. Lottery participation prospered in the country, but soon the Public Gambling Act came into effect, preventing people from organising gambling events or visiting one.
An entire century went by before lottery games would again come into light, this time the state of Kerala launching its own lottery as opposed to the national lottery. This further led to 12 new states setting up their own lottery for the residents, which are still active till this day.
Then in 1998, the Lotteries Regulation Act was set up to regulate how respective states in India run government lotteries.
Future of Indian State Lottery
With technology taking centre stage and the pattern expected to continue, it is inevitable for the Indian state lottery to be available online on a grand scale. The Internet is home to lotteries from all over the world with grand prizes at stake. The issue currently is that most of these lotteries are from overseas nations.
The Indian administration needs to understand the scope of the government lottery scheme at the world stage. At the moment, it is nearly impossible for foreign residents to participate in Indian lotteries, but making it available online can change its position for good.
We expect that buying state lottery tickets online will be possible in the near future for all the 13 states that legalised lottery games. For now, you can decide to play lotteries from all over the world online by playing on one of the sites below.
