Is a Corruption-Free India Possible By The Year 2047?

As the century belongs to India, let us collectively try to leave no stone unturned in our effort to curb corruption by 2047 when we celebrate the centenary of our independence and achieve the goal of $30 trillion economy with all attributes of a developed nation where the ease of living in general is highly improved with minimal income and wealth chasm among the masses.

People should also be on cloud nine to see the statutory pillars of equality, justice, fraternity, liberty and inclusivity holding the country’s socio-economic and political landscape firmly with little or no scope for caste and religion-based discrimination among our own people. It is certainly a colossal task but as an optimist, every citizen should work with a resolve where people’s well-being should be at its core.

I see corruption as a major stumbling block in our country’s multidimensional socio-economic development. It is a serious multifaceted challenge but can effectively be handled by enabling our people to raise their voice and concern without any hesitation, and integrating robust anti-corruption measures into finances, policies and projects by prioritising transparency and accountability so that resources are protected; policies are delivered on their objectives, and projects reach the communities that need them most.

One should agree that addressing corruption head-on will rebuild societies’ trust in governance and will drive progress towards a sustainable social order.

When India was ranked 96 out of 180 countries in the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) for 2024 by the Transparency International report, there were voices of dissent and concerns but nothing substantial was heard. The CPI, which ranked 180 countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector corruption according to experts and business people, used a scale of zero to 100, where zero is highly corrupt and 100 is very clean. India’s overall score was 38 while it was 39 in 2023 and 40 in 2022. India’s rank in 2023 was 93. China – which ranked 76 – is a global power today.

Maybe ten years down the line, India’s rank improves significantly but not the ground realities. So, the challenge is ensuring overall improvement in people’s ease of living along with fighting against corruption. Are we prepared mentally, ethically and morally? Are we ready to ensure corruption-free movement of files, goods, and development projects where benchmarks are not compromised? Are we capable of making sure that justice will neither be delayed nor denied irrespective of the might of the accused? Will we be able to develop a social order where the majority has the guts to say fair is fair, unfair is unfair? Will be able to guarantee that rich or poor – everybody will have access to quality, ethical and affordable or free healthcare and education?

Wherein lies the solution to our problems or the answers to our questions? It lies in our ability to defeat corruption, which affects us in more ways than one, destroying lives, undermining our rights and exacerbating socio-economic political crises. It blocks real action where it is needed most. But, what is corruption? Transparency International defines corruption as “the abuse of entrusted power for private gain. Corruption erodes trust, weakens democracy, hampers economic development and further exacerbates inequality, poverty, social division and the environmental crisis.”

Corruption can take many forms, and can include behaviours like public servants demanding or taking money or favours in exchange for services, politicians misusing public money or granting public jobs or contracts to their sponsors, friends and families, corporations bribing officials to get lucrative deals. Corruption can happen anywhere: in business, government, the courts, the media, and in civil society, as well as across all sectors from health and education to infrastructure and sports. Corruption can involve anyone - politicians, government officials, public servants, business people or members of the public.

Corruption happens in the shadows, often with the help of professional enablers such as bankers, lawyers, accountants and real estate agents, opaque financial systems and anonymous shell companies that allow corruption schemes to flourish and the corrupt to launder and hide their illicit wealth. Corruption adapts to different contexts and changing circumstances. It can evolve in response to changes in rules, legislation and even technology. So deeply and widely are rooted the tentacles of corruption.

The CPI-2024 report says that “huge numbers of people around the world suffer severe consequences of global heating, as funds intended to help countries cut greenhouse gas emissions and protect vulnerable populations are stolen or misused.”

Are we as a nation ready and confident enough to make tackling corruption a top and long-term priority with concrete action? So, far we have not been able to put integrity at the centre of our efforts, duties and responsibilities. As a result, achieving real impact continues to elude us. There is a mammoth mismatch between ground realities and what is being put on papers. The key stakeholders in governance love to be divorced from the ground realities. Building and protecting safeguards against theft of public money, assets and resources have not yet become a priority, as there is no accountability against every perk and position one gets by being a part of the governance. Reaching the highest levels of transparency and inclusivity in policies and funding will be possible only when the responsibility and outcome are intertwined.

I do agree to the fact that “access to justice can be improved through strengthening enforcement and oversight bodies including anti-corruption bodies. Local communities need access to grievance mechanisms, while those who speak out – climate, land and environmental defenders, and whistleblowers – must be protected from all forms of retaliation.”

Similarly, there is a need to strengthen citizen engagement in funds and real work auditing. Information on finances, projects and contracts should be open, accessible and disseminated in a timely way. Last but not the least, inclusive accountability frameworks will ensure that communities are engaged throughout to produce desired results that better address our socio-economic and political needs. The million-dollar question is: Are we still ready for bigger inclusive goals?

(The writer is a senior journalist, author and columnist. The views expressed are strictly his personal)