Recently Prime Minister Manmohan Singh led his council of ministers in declaring their personal assets on the official web site. Although many people may not be convinced about the actual wealth being disclosed, nevertheless it is a good beginning. The long term objective should be to encourage transparency and probity in public life and also rid ourselves of the blatant corruption taking place. Declaration of assets is an exercise which will hopefully become part and parcel of what we proudly call good governance. Recently the IAS officers serving in Nagaland had to also make such a declaration. And if, our top bureaucrats can do it, then why can’t our ruling politicians also follow suit? We will have to wait and watch whether our Chief Minister and his colleagues will also volunteer to make known their asset/s. In fact the manner in which the anti-corruption crusade is taking shape in India, it will not be too long before those in far away Nagaland will also have to fall in line. So rather than resist what is already going to happen, we should also start to put reforms on the track and begin slowly the process of cleansing our government system.
In mainland India there is a ripple of change already taking place. The Centre’s initiative to fight corruption seems to be on a fast track with a Group of Ministers on corruption having already set in motion reform measures. For instance, bureaucrats face a 10% loss of pension for minor cases of corruption and a 20% cut for major infringements that lead to compulsory retirement from service. Also cases of public servants accused of graft will be fast tracked by quickening the process of approvals. There is also a proposal to ensure that disciplinary action is decided within a year of a complaint being received. The anti-corruption steps are part of measures suggested by the GoM on corruption headed by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee and accepted by the government for implementation.
Coming to declaration of assets, while the authenticity of this exercise may be questioned, yet this is a step in the right direction no matter how flawed such declaration may be. Declaration of assets by Ministers and Government officials who are responsible for fund management of public money is an essential step to curb corruptions in the higher level of administration. As mentioned the PM along with his ministerial team has taken the lead in declaring their assets. Similarly the IAS officers across the country have to now do the same. And off course all of us are only too aware of the Lokpal (anti-corruption body) which is likely to become a reality before the year end. And then the State’s of the Indian Union may well have to set-up their Lokayuktas to tackle corruption. In a welcome move some of the forward looking Chief Ministers are already working to get this in place.
The Bihar CM Nitish Kumar has already gone many steps ahead of the others by taking some far reaching initiatives to tackle corruption. For instance, the Bihar CM has decided to withhold salaries of officials and employees who fail to declare assets held in their name and names of their kin. So besides the IAS, IPS, Central service officials even the Class I, II and III officials of the state government will also have to abide by the directive. Off-course, Mr Nitish Kumar had to set an example by declaring his own assets, prompting his ministers to follow suit. And that’s not all, going a step further the Bihar government under Nitish Kumar has decided to seize property belonging to officials accused of corruption even before charges are proved. The government then plans to immediately install a school in the seized property. Already one such property of a corrupt official has been seized. Let other CMs dare to follow their Bihar counterpart.
In mainland India there is a ripple of change already taking place. The Centre’s initiative to fight corruption seems to be on a fast track with a Group of Ministers on corruption having already set in motion reform measures. For instance, bureaucrats face a 10% loss of pension for minor cases of corruption and a 20% cut for major infringements that lead to compulsory retirement from service. Also cases of public servants accused of graft will be fast tracked by quickening the process of approvals. There is also a proposal to ensure that disciplinary action is decided within a year of a complaint being received. The anti-corruption steps are part of measures suggested by the GoM on corruption headed by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee and accepted by the government for implementation.
Coming to declaration of assets, while the authenticity of this exercise may be questioned, yet this is a step in the right direction no matter how flawed such declaration may be. Declaration of assets by Ministers and Government officials who are responsible for fund management of public money is an essential step to curb corruptions in the higher level of administration. As mentioned the PM along with his ministerial team has taken the lead in declaring their assets. Similarly the IAS officers across the country have to now do the same. And off course all of us are only too aware of the Lokpal (anti-corruption body) which is likely to become a reality before the year end. And then the State’s of the Indian Union may well have to set-up their Lokayuktas to tackle corruption. In a welcome move some of the forward looking Chief Ministers are already working to get this in place.
The Bihar CM Nitish Kumar has already gone many steps ahead of the others by taking some far reaching initiatives to tackle corruption. For instance, the Bihar CM has decided to withhold salaries of officials and employees who fail to declare assets held in their name and names of their kin. So besides the IAS, IPS, Central service officials even the Class I, II and III officials of the state government will also have to abide by the directive. Off-course, Mr Nitish Kumar had to set an example by declaring his own assets, prompting his ministers to follow suit. And that’s not all, going a step further the Bihar government under Nitish Kumar has decided to seize property belonging to officials accused of corruption even before charges are proved. The government then plans to immediately install a school in the seized property. Already one such property of a corrupt official has been seized. Let other CMs dare to follow their Bihar counterpart.
