Grassroots’
Views on Corruption
contribution
to IBP listserve from CUTS,
India
Greetings from CUTS, India!
At the outset, our intention is not to add to
anything more onto endless debates over ‘definition’ of
corruption. The idea is to get grassroots’ views on corruption
as it poses fundamental questions about the relationships,
boundaries and overlaps between public personal interests, and as
responsive and effective governance requires significant amount of
citizens’ trust on the state and vice-versa.
In Rajasthan, a state in north-west India,
nefarious corruption is decomposing the government machinery in
various areas of administration. To control the spread of
corruption, the state government has formed Anti-corruption
Department. It is renamed as Anti-corruption Bureau in November
1998. The Bureau registered 156 cases of corruption in the year
1998. The number had gone up to 331 in 1999.
Given this situation, Consumer Unity & Trust Society has conducted a simple questionnaire survey among its grassroots networkers of Rajasthan in the second quarter of the year 2000. The survey was done as part of the "Promoting State Accountability and Citizen Empowerment through Budget Analysis" project. More than 80 percent respondents were from rural areas.
The questionnaire was divided into the
following sections and the findings are as follows:
1. Forms of corruption
Most of the respondents said bribes in the
form of money and gifts in kind. About ten percent mentioned that
getting things done which are not legal at all is another form of
corruption.
2. Category of ‘most corrupt’ officials
Responses were more or less evenly
distributed on the category of ‘most corrupt’ officials;
higher, middle level and lower.
3. Areas of services where corruption is most prevalent
Maintenance of law and order, providence of
electricity, food, water and irrigation facilities, employment
generation are areas of services where corruption is most
prevalent. According to the networkers, education department is
least corrupt. Most surprisingly, respondents found that there is
relatively less corruption in the management of natural
calamities.
4. Factors which encourage corruption
Among the factors, which encourage
corruption, majority said loss of ethical and moral values,
defective legal system, lack of transparency in the governance,
and ‘kinship corruption’ (where the corrupt protects each
other). ‘Scarcity of services’ comes as the last factor
encouraging corruption.
5. Effects of corruption
Majority opinion was corruption denies the
poor their legitimate share in public resources and services and
reduces public trust in governance.
6. Possible solutions:
Grassroots networkers opined that we have to go to the roots of corruption and design in-built checks and balances in the system itself that will tackle these root causes. They were also of the opinion that simplification of governmental rules and procedures will minimise the scope for corruption and use of information technology can be an important tool to bring transparency in the governance.
Our request:
Above-stated are findings of a simple sample
survey. We would like to draw your kind attention to let us know
more about similar survey conducted in other parts of India as
well as different regions in the world. This will help us in
carrying forward our endeavours to fight corruption in the
society.
Project Team
Consumer
Unity & Trust Society (CUTS)
D-217, Bhaskar Marg, Bani Park
Jaipur-302016 (Raj.) , India
Ph: 91.141.20 7482-84(3 Lines)
Fax: 91.141.20 7486/20 2968/ 20 3998
Email: cutsjpr@jp1.dot.net.in/
cuts.jpr@cuts-india.org
Web: www.cuts-india.org
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"Pursuing Social Justice and Economic Equity
Within and Across Borders Since 1983"
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