Corruption is taking a heavy toll in India

[S_O_C_O_M]

Corruption is taking a heavy toll in India​

Posted by BRIJ KHINDARIA, Foreign Affairs Columnist in Economy, International, Politics.

Nov 9th, 2010

Even as India basks in the respect showered on it as a player on the global stage by President Barack Obama, a wave of despondency is rising among almost all sections of the people at the rampant corruption corroding its politicians, bureaucrats and media.

Recent revelations indicate misappropriation of nearly $900 million in various scams orchestrated by senior politicians, ministers and top officials. The latest episode was the disappearance of some $200 million in the run up to the 2010 Commonwealth Games in October and new information about a $400 million misappropriation some years ago during allocation of cellular telephone licenses. A particularly painful recent revelation was the allocation of heavily subsidized apartments in a prime area of Mumbai to senior military figures, bureaucrats and politicians instead of the war widows and war wounded for whom they were meant as a grateful nation’s thanks.

A crucial leadership meeting today of India’s venerable Congress Party, which heads the current national coalition government, failed to make corruption a main driver of its political agenda. Congress leaders blamed high level figures in the opposition parties for some of the corruption cases highlighted by the media, thus making corruption a political issue instead of a national scandal cutting across Party lines.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who is widely admired for his personal incorruptibility, and Congress President Sonia Gandhi fueled a sense of helplessness at the impunity of the corrupt when they denounced this malevolence but remained silent about allegations against top Congress politicians and leaders of coalition allies.

Corruption is thought to be embedded deeply at every level, high or low, of every institution of national democracy, including the judiciary, police, tax administration, top administrative officials and politicians. Indian laws disallow investigation or prosecution of politicians without parliament’s permission and of middle and senior bureaucrats without permission from the cabinet of ministers.

There is no institution beyond the control of government or bureaucracy with independent investigative powers and the authority to prosecute politicians or officials. Although draconian laws exist to prevent and punish the corrupt, they are rarely applied and have failed as deterrents.

Obama’s visit and thoughtful words seem to have opened Indian minds to the extraordinary potential of their country. For the first time the leader of the Western world is offering India a seat at the top economic and security tables as a partner. China sits at the top tables because it is feared and its intentions are suspect. India is being asked as a friend.

Suddenly, previous US rhetoric about India’s valued role in world affairs has changed into genuine belief in her ability to help create a more equitable, secure and people-friendly world order. This has jolted Indians out of resignation to being exploited by institutionalized corruption in all corridors of power.

In general, India is dynamic, creative and youthful compared to Western nations, China and Japan. There is energy and excitement about economic growth and making money. But Obama’s visit heightened realization that corruption is a greater enemy of better lives for Indians than poverty and other material shortages.

Disappointment is growing because of recognition that the people cannot trust any institution to impartially uncover and punish the corrupt. The discovery that some senior army generals were involved in Mumbai’s real estate scandal has caused consternation because the army was widely admired for being incorruptible.

A feeling of helplessness is rising because there seem to be no workable solutions, although politicians rail against corruption across Party lines. It turns out that everybody is naked because Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh, both known for their probity, are reluctant to aggressively implement anti-corruption drives within their own Party while making shrill accusations against opposition figures. They fear to open a Pandora’s Box capable of bringing down the government by causing severe losses for the Congress and its allies in elections at the State and local levels.

Even the media is no longer trusted as an honest filter between the powerful and the people. This is mainly because major newspapers and TV channels do not clearly differentiate sponsored news and analysis from genuine reporting.

Transparency international ranks India at 87th place in its index of corrupt countries. There is little hope that things will change dramatically for the better soon.

Corruption is taking a heavy toll in India | The Moderate Voice

 

[Spring Onion]

Corruption is taking toll everywhere and Pakistan is one area where it galore

 

[hellofriends]

it very difficult to stop the corruption..we indian think that higher salary to govt. employee can stop corruption but we had wrong...

 

[Valiant_Soul]

I think this problem is very much solvable, if and only if, we can device a system wherein money and power both do not rest in the same hands. We need to have a fifth institution akin to the powers of EC, comprising of persons of integrity, who will trace the flow of money from top to bottom. That is to begin at the top, vaguely.

The other major solution is to instill high values into children right from the beginning through the education system. I have seen drastic loss of conscience in majority of children in schools in the NCR region. This needs to change as soon as possible. Contrary to my school, these days they do not seem to be having separate moral classes.

The third step is a continuous effort to create drastic awareness in people that by falling to corruption they are ruining their own bigger home, and their own larger family, which produces many present and future severe consequences for them, their children and others. They need to be made aware that corruption also makes us vulnerable to high security threats. Messages such as these should be flashed where ever and which ever suitable manner as possible.

The last thing is to hear the words of Mahatma Gandhi - "Be the change you want to see in the world".

 

[below_freezing]

Corruption is a hard problem.

It has nothing to do with system. It has nothing to do with culture. It has little to do with levels of development (its still corruption with more money, but it won't be fatal).

Separating money and power is impossible in a modern society. Those with money will gain power and those with power will use it to make money. The cold truth is, in this world almost everything is for sale.

What can be done is a program where officials monitor each other while being forced to report their wealth to the public. And reinstate the death penalty. Singapore executes more people per capita than any other nation in the world, it's the cleanest government in the world. India should also switch from hanging to electricity like the US and broadcast executions of corrupt officials online. If anyone has watched an execution by electricity they'll be very scared to do anything that leads to that.

 

[Vimana1]

I hope Baba Ramdev launches a political party in India he is very popular in India and overseas now.

 

[prototype]

so the latest in India is the 2g spectrum allocation scam,in tune of something around $30 billion,now that huge

Basially i support UPA,but this time i am pissed with its protective cove over raja, basically this is all the products of Coalition politics

 

[jayron]

Raja's DMK in Tamil Nadu is doing a great job with the governance of the state. Lot of jobs and development. But the Karunanidhi family is like a kingdom now. They have spread their business web everywhere, from real estate to TV to movie distribution. You cannot escape them. Sadly, the choice is between him or the Psycho Jayalalitha.

 

[hellofriends]

I hope Baba Ramdev launches a political party in India he is very popular in India and overseas now.

no only few indian know about this party even i don't know the actual name of his party. As i know he will participate in 2014 general election at all the 445 seats. but i think we should give one chance to him.....however i am not very excited bcoz i know nothing is going to change....

 

[INDIAN007]

no only few indian know about this party even i don't know the actual name of his party. As i know he will participate in 2014 general election at all the 445 seats. but i think we should give one chance to him.....however i am not very excited bcoz i know nothing is going to change....

The name of Political party of Baba ramdev is ' Bharat Swabhiman '

Baba Ramdev launches political party named Bharat Swabhiman - India - DNA

 

[Alphatech]

Pakistanis worried about Indian corruption....talk of people in glass houses. Lol!

As for the topic, corruption is such an integral part of the Indian way of life that sadly is not going to disappear anytime soon.

But as recent events have proven, the level of corruption will be kept in control as India progresses. The best example for this is the recent commonwealth games. The officials tried to get the maximum they could out of it, and it became blatantly obvious. The media could easily track corruption using by comparing the prices of things with their normal market prices. Things like the Right to Information Act, very proactive media, wealth of information available on the internet etc make corruption much easier to track. Nowadays hidden camera stings and leaked information are becoming a major way of keeping track of corruption. All it takes is one angry employee to leak information of his boss's corruption and it will be all over the news.

This means that officials have to be careful about when and where they try to steal money or get bribes. They also have to be more careful than before do it in such a manner that it isn't too obvious. Gone is the day when a official could go abroad, buy something and give it whatever price he thinks is believable. The growth of the Internet and foreign media links means that tracking deals across the world is much more easier.

Then there is the risk involved. The media nowadays will eviscerate any famous person or politician accused of corruption. They had no hesitation going after people like Suresh Kalmadi, Lalith Modi, or even Shashi Tharoor, and they got exactly what they wanted. The risk of being exposed will make politicians thinks twice before they dip their hands in, because nowadays the media will blow it so much out of proportion that it will be a career killer.

Then there is another problem, what is the point in getting money if you can't spend it. The days of taking as much as you can, and buying stuff all over the world is gone. It is much easier to track personal wealth and even overseas investments, that politicians or bureaucrats will not be able to spend even a fraction of what they earn in their lifetime. Even if you give it to your kids and ask them to spend it abroad, the media or investigative agencies can easily track the earnings vs expenditure of the kids, where ever they are. If you can't comfortably spend what you steal, it will reduce the amount of corruption and associated risk that is people are willing to take.


Lastly but not the least, there is the the economic growth benefits. India has much more money today that it can afford to lose a bit to corruption and still get things done. while it certainly isn't a justification for corruption, it helps to mitigate the effects. The problem with corruption in countries like Pakistan is that politicians steal so much that there is very little left over for anything else. By comparison, even if a few pennies get dropped, India is still able to get things done due to a much better economic situation. The Commonwealth games is a good example for this. Even though a lot of monbey was scammed, it was not evident at all in the actual games. Everything was top-notch and no one complained of anything being below the standard.

As much as i would like to see my country corruption free in my lifetime, I know it's not going to happen. And while stronger punishment and stricter enforcement will do a lot of good, there are some who will still be smart enough to nick a few pennies. But like I said above, things wills reduce a lot over the coming years and unlike some people think, corruption will never come even close to taking India into bankruptcy.....though some countries in the neighborhood are in a very real danger of facing that situation.

 

[kak1978]

The one and only solution to contain corruption in India is passing the LokPal bill. This will create a fast track resolution of corruption charges and covers all politicians and bureaucrats including the Prime minister. Like the Right to Information act (RTI) this will give immense powers to the Lok ayukta's and people and provide for speedy and independent convictions of the guillty and there by sending a strong message to people who think about corruption. See how RTI is changing the way things are done, even the scams being exposed now are due to RTI.

 

[DesiGuy]

I hope Baba Ramdev launches a political party in India he is very popular in India and overseas now.

better tell him to stay out of this business. i don't trust no baba or whatever.