Bribery a way of life: 66% businesses in India paid bribes to govt officials in last 12 months, claims survey
- The survey report said that 54 per cent business firms were forced to pay bribes while 46 per cent paid voluntarily to expedite the compliance process.
It seems bribery remains a way of life in India when wanting to get work done at government departments.
According to a report by online platform LocalCricles, around 66 per cent of businesses surveyed across 159 districts have admitted to paying bribes to government officials in the last 12 months.
The survey, conducted between May 22 and November 30, 2024 by LocalCricles, received 18,000 responses.
The report also said that 54 per cent business firms were forced to pay bribes while 46 per cent paid voluntarily to expedite the compliance process.
"As many businesses would vouch anonymously, bribes remain a way of life when wanting to get government departments to speed up the permit or compliance process, even getting duplicate copy of the authority license or anything to do with property matters. 66 per cent of businesses surveyed paid a bribe in the last 12 months," the report said.
Only 16 per cent of businesses claimed that they always managed to get work done without paying a bribe and 19 per cent said they "did not have a need" to do so.
"Of businesses that paid bribes in the last 12 months, 54 per cent were forced to do so, while 46 per cent paid it for timely processing. This kind of bribery amounts to extortion where permits, supplier qualification, files, orders, payments are routinely held up when dealing with Government agencies," the report said.
Bribes paid by businesses continues to take place despite computerisation in several places, and behind closed doors away from CCTVs, said the report.
"Though initiatives like the Government eProcurement marketplace are good steps to reduce corruption, there are still openings to engage in corruption for supplier qualification, bid manipulation, completion certificate and payments," the report said.
Businesses that participated in the survey said that 75 per cent of the bribes were paid to officials of departments such as legal, metrology, food, drug, health, etc.
"Many also reported paying bribes to GST officials, pollution department, municipal corporation and power department," the report said.
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Business NewsCompaniesNewsBribery a way of life: 66% businesses in India paid bribes to govt officials in last 12 months, claims survey
First Published:8 Dec 2024, 04:59 PM IST
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