'Goa's corruption level alarming' 8 Sep 2008, 0512 hrs IST,TNN PANAJI: Goa has an 'alarming' level of corruption, finds a study involving below poverty level families vis-à-vis their access to public services. The state rubs shoulders with Nagaland among smaller states and Union territories, and five other bigger states, including Bihar.
The joint study by Delhi-based Centre for Media Studies (CMS) and Transparency International India (TII) and released recently covered all 31 states and union territories and interviewed the poor in urban slums and rural areas. The states were ranked into four levels - alarming, very high, high and moderate. Among the bigger states who share the 'honours' with Goa for the alarming level of corruption are Assam, Jammu and Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh. Chief Secretary J P Singh declined to comment, saying, "I will have to see the report." However, Ganesh Chodankar, general secretary, Goa Government Employees Association said the findings are accurate. "For any appointment in government service, one has to pay huge sums underhand," he said. "It is the political class which is responsible for the malaise," he said. In Goa, households of poor families in Panaji, Margao, Ponda and Sanguem were contacted for the survey on corruption in eleven public services, including power, water supply, as also need-based services like land records/registration, housing, and police. As far as awareness about Right to Information Act and its use by BPL households is concerned, Goa figured at the bottom with only 1.2% of BPL families in the state aware about the potential of RTI as a tool to curb corruption. The awareness in Bihar was marginally higher at 1.4%, Himachal Pradesh 2.9%, Haryana 2.9% while Andhra Pradesh topped with 13%. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Goa/Goas_corruption_level_alarming/articleshow/3456829.cms ~(^^)~ Avelino
