Assam, Most corrupt State - Assam Tribune

Assam has earned a non flattering distinction of occupying the top position among most corrupt States in the country on the basis of a survey conducted by Transparency International and Centre for Media Studies jointly during November 2007 and January 2008 on the basis of corruption in 11 vital services involving below poverty line and rural population. The survey report released recently by Hamid Ansari,Vice President of India made startling disclosure that the BPL families pay a staggering amount of Rs 9000 crore to avail these 11 vital services, narmely, PDS, hospital services, school education, electricity and water supply-termed as basic services and six need based services such as police, land records, forests, housing, banking and NREGs.One third of the BPL families could not avail PDS,school education and electricity services because they could not afford to pay bribe.Among the need based services,the Police service proved to be most corrupt earning 39 billion rupees as bribe followed by land records staff and hospital services. The study revealed in stark detail the misery of the poor, poorest of the poor,margianalised and vulnerable section of the society not benefited by 9 per cent growth of the economy creating more millionaires and billionaires in India.The Chief Minister of Assam,Tarun Gogoi in his characteristic manner remarked that if the State was most corrupt how progress was faster than other States totally ignoring the result of the survey which proved that high growth had not benefited the poorer and marginalised section of the society. It is a fact that the growth rate of Assam and per capita income have increased during his seven year tenure, but corruption has also increased manifold during the same period. He has declared that he would like a transparent and corruption free government but failed to rein in his cabinet colleagues from indulging in rampant corruption in spite of public hue and cry against those corrupt Ministers. It is a sad reflection on the Chief Minister that one of his trusted Minister is under CBI custody for offering bribe to CBI official enquiring his role into the murder of a political rival. Many files requiring prosecution sanction to corrupt officials are gathering dust in his secretariat. Plethora of agencies have been created to detect and prosecute corrupt officials but not many corrupt officials have been suspended or tried. Police salary scandal, police-land mafia nexus in Guwahati should have been firmly dealt with. But the State government is not bothered about the fates of hundreds of Kanti Rams who fell victim to land mafia and lost every thing. The Transparency International and Centre for Media Studies have recommended four pronged drive to fight corruption-simplification of procedure, streamlining of information flows, reorienting front-end staff and activating civil society group. It is high time that the government and the civil society fight corruption vigorously as computerisation, e-governance,citizen charter,RTI Act have minimal resonance for the poor and the poorest of the poor. source: http://www.assamtribune.com/scripts/details.asp?id=jul0408\edit