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August 6, 2001
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Money > Business Headlines > Report August 6, 2001 |
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Vittal's guide to fighting corruptionKanchana Suggu in Bombay He is the man who shocked everyone by putting the names of senior government officials accused of corruption on the Central Vigilance Commission's official Web site. He is the man who doesn't mince words when speaking about the extent of corruption in politics and business. He is the man who has taken a vow to make the country free of corruption. But more importantly, he is a man who refuses to make large promises. Central Vigilance Commissioner N Vittal would rather show people how the dream of a corruption-free India is achievable. On August 15, 2001, CVC's official Web site (www.cvc.nic.in) will carry a 'citizen's guide to fight corruption', which will help ordinary citizens of India beat corruption while making optimum use of bodies such as the Central Vigilance Commission. "Everyday we read about some scam or the other in the newspapers. First it was Ketan Parekh, now it is UTI. We are slowly becoming a more and more corrupt country," says Vittal. Vittal was in Bombay to deliver the Annual Lalit Doshi Memorial Lecture. The subject this year was: 'Corruption in Public Life: Have We Become Immune? While lambasting the government's futile efforts in the past to tackle the problem of black money with schemes such as the Voluntary Disclosure of Income Scheme, Vittal suggested that it would be better to have a flat tax rate of 20 per cent for an annual income above Rs 200,000. "Even the same tax rate for an (annual) income above Rs 500,000 is acceptable," Vittal added. He also said that the government must give a three-month window of opportunity to all holders of black money to come out into the open and pay a flat rate of 21 per cent. The fact that India stands 69th on the corruption perception index of Transparency International, a voluntary body, is definitely a matter of shame for the country, he said. But an optimistic Vittal asserted that more and more countries are now emphasising on the need to erase corruption at all levels. |
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