The Hindu Business Line : `Step up vigilance to control corruption in PSUs'

FOR those who have been dreaming of controlling corruption in India, the answer is fairly clear. Try and discipline officers of public sector units in the country. The only catch is the number, which is rather on the high side at one million.

An interactive meeting on `Corruption: The Nemesis of Developing India', organised here jointly by the Indian Merchants' Chamber and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) earlier this week came up with a number of solutions to a problem that has been plaguing the country for many years.

A large part of corruption in public life is confined to less than two million decision-making public sector officials among the total number of 19.5 million public sector employees in the country. Of this, Class III and Class IV employees accounted for 17.5 million while Class I and Class II employees were about two million.

"It is these two millions who have scope to take bribe in return for illegitimate favours done by them in the course of rendering public services. Assuming that 50 per cent of these two millions are corrupt, the problem of containing corruption narrows down to one million. We can cope with it by tightening their accountability, stepping up vigilance and other administrative systems, including setting up traps whenever required," said Mr S.P. Srivastava, IPS, Joint Director of CBI (West Zone).

According to Mr K. Subramanyam, Chief Vigilance Officer, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), people generally tend to become corrupt, if the institutions provided them opportunities. "In many public sector institutions, the purchase and sales departments provide ample opportunities for corruption. For plugging this major loophole, we, at BPCL, have set up 100 per cent online operational systems for tenders and bids in respect of all purchases and sales, thereby completely automating the system," he said.

Mr J.F. Ribeiro, Chairman of IMC's Anti-Corruption Cell and former Police Commissioner of Mumbai, said that in corruption cases where officials had been caught in the act, the culprits should be dismissed forthwith.

"Unfortunately, the present practice is to suspend such officials and pay them suspension allowance, till the pendency of their cases. When it is a black-and-white case, why should they be paid any allowance from the exchequer? The right thing is to dismiss them instantaneously," he said.

He also suggested that in many States' senior officers of ACB were being appointed solely by the States' political leaders whose integrity might not be above board.

"In view of this, the directors of Anti-Corruption Bureaus in States must be appointed by the Chief Vigilance Commissioner, who is accountable to only the President," he said.

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