PM: corruption holding back economic growth, investors
The Financial Express, August 27, 2009, Page 1
fe Bureaus, New Delhi
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday announced a war on corruption in India’s public life. Corruption, he said, hurts economic growth and wastes precious national resources, besides scaring away foreign investors who expect fair treatment and transparent dealings.
Calling for more transparency and accountability in development programmes, the PM said systems and procedures should be more decentralised and less discretionary.
Promising to launch a multi-pronged attack on corruption, the PM, in one of his most hard-hitting speeches, said the government would soon decide on the Second Administrative Reforms Commission’s recommendations on ‘Ethics in Governance.’
Admitting that corruption is hampering India’s efforts to integrate with the world economy, the PM said, “The world respects India’s democracy, our plural and secular values, our independent judiciary and free press… but pervasive corruption in our country tarnishes our image. It also discourages investors, who expect fair treatment and transparent dealings when dealing with public authorities.” He was addressing the biennial conference of the Central Bureau of Investigation and state anti-corruption bureaus here.
India has been ranked a lowly 74 among 180 countries on Transparecny International’s Corruption Perceptions Index for 2008.
“Corruption distorts the rule of law and weakens institutions of governance. It hurts our economic growth in a variety of ways, apart from hindering our efforts to build a just, fair and equitable society,” Singh said, pointing out that though the Centre has ambitious programmes to help the poor and the marginalised, the ‘constant refrain in public discourse is that much of what the government provides never reaches the intended beneficiaries.’
“The design of development programmes should provide for more transparency and accountability. Systems and procedures which are opaque, complicated, centralised and discretionary are a fertile breeding ground for the evil of corruption. They should be made more transparent, simpler, decentralised and less discretionary,” the PM asserted.
At a time when India needs to spend billions on development and infrastructure projects, Singh flagged his concerns about delays in completion of projects and the quality of execution. “Important projects, which have huge externalities for growth, do not get implemented in time, and when they do get finished, they are often of a poor quality.
Asking anti-corruption agencies to aggressively pursue high-level corruption, the PM said, “There is a pervasive feeling today in our country that while petty cases get tackled quickly, the big fish often escape punishment. This has to change. Rapid, fair and accurate investigation of allegations of corruption in high places should remain your utmost priority.”
He told agencies to acquire new skills ‘to stay one step ahead of the corrupt’, noting that the ever evolving levels of sophistication and complexity in corruption cases present new challenges for the enforcement agencies. Singh also asked state agencies to set targets for investigation of cases like the CBI has done at the Centre this year.
Quick investigations, however, are not enough to bring the guilty to book.
“Trials must be conducted expeditiously and judgements must be delivered quickly. To begin with, the aim should be to conclude the trial in two years,” the PM said, declaring the government’s decision to set up 71 new CBI courts as model courts.
The PM asked anti-corruption agencies to allay fears of harassment among public officials. “Officials have to be encouraged to take decision, to accept responsibility, to show initiative and, whenever required, to take risks if our bureaucracy is to shed its slothful and lethargic image. Very often, the fear of harassment and damage to reputation makes officials unduly timid and slow and the whole government machinery becomes ineffectual,” Singh concluded.
The Financial Express, August 27, 2009, Page 1
fe Bureaus, New Delhi
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday announced a war on corruption in India’s public life. Corruption, he said, hurts economic growth and wastes precious national resources, besides scaring away foreign investors who expect fair treatment and transparent dealings.
Calling for more transparency and accountability in development programmes, the PM said systems and procedures should be more decentralised and less discretionary.
Promising to launch a multi-pronged attack on corruption, the PM, in one of his most hard-hitting speeches, said the government would soon decide on the Second Administrative Reforms Commission’s recommendations on ‘Ethics in Governance.’
Admitting that corruption is hampering India’s efforts to integrate with the world economy, the PM said, “The world respects India’s democracy, our plural and secular values, our independent judiciary and free press… but pervasive corruption in our country tarnishes our image. It also discourages investors, who expect fair treatment and transparent dealings when dealing with public authorities.” He was addressing the biennial conference of the Central Bureau of Investigation and state anti-corruption bureaus here.
India has been ranked a lowly 74 among 180 countries on Transparecny International’s Corruption Perceptions Index for 2008.
“Corruption distorts the rule of law and weakens institutions of governance. It hurts our economic growth in a variety of ways, apart from hindering our efforts to build a just, fair and equitable society,” Singh said, pointing out that though the Centre has ambitious programmes to help the poor and the marginalised, the ‘constant refrain in public discourse is that much of what the government provides never reaches the intended beneficiaries.’
“The design of development programmes should provide for more transparency and accountability. Systems and procedures which are opaque, complicated, centralised and discretionary are a fertile breeding ground for the evil of corruption. They should be made more transparent, simpler, decentralised and less discretionary,” the PM asserted.
At a time when India needs to spend billions on development and infrastructure projects, Singh flagged his concerns about delays in completion of projects and the quality of execution. “Important projects, which have huge externalities for growth, do not get implemented in time, and when they do get finished, they are often of a poor quality.
Asking anti-corruption agencies to aggressively pursue high-level corruption, the PM said, “There is a pervasive feeling today in our country that while petty cases get tackled quickly, the big fish often escape punishment. This has to change. Rapid, fair and accurate investigation of allegations of corruption in high places should remain your utmost priority.”
He told agencies to acquire new skills ‘to stay one step ahead of the corrupt’, noting that the ever evolving levels of sophistication and complexity in corruption cases present new challenges for the enforcement agencies. Singh also asked state agencies to set targets for investigation of cases like the CBI has done at the Centre this year.
Quick investigations, however, are not enough to bring the guilty to book.
“Trials must be conducted expeditiously and judgements must be delivered quickly. To begin with, the aim should be to conclude the trial in two years,” the PM said, declaring the government’s decision to set up 71 new CBI courts as model courts.
The PM asked anti-corruption agencies to allay fears of harassment among public officials. “Officials have to be encouraged to take decision, to accept responsibility, to show initiative and, whenever required, to take risks if our bureaucracy is to shed its slothful and lethargic image. Very often, the fear of harassment and damage to reputation makes officials unduly timid and slow and the whole government machinery becomes ineffectual,” Singh concluded.
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