The many shades of grey in the journey called Life
So much so for CAG’s take on ‘anything that is not auctioned is corruption’. Market forces will govern the money government can make. And it is also the government’s duty to provide sops to industry to get started and survive. Telecom may not have boomed if sops were not provided. It is possible that no company would have bid at the price CAG now expects. And that is what seems have happened here. Let’s see how this drama unfolds.
One of the earliest posts on this blog was my attempt at consolidating a Bribe Rate List for getting various works done in different government departments. I just came to know that even to get your brand new car registered you need to pay a bribe. This is something that you won’t come to know easily because it is included in registration services listed by car companies. I am also not sure if this is applicable for Delhi registration, but is most definitely applicable for UP state registration.
I recently bought a brand new Maruti car. The sales man explained charges under various heads, including registration. Fair enough. However after the car was delivered along with all the receipts, I realized that the amounts didn’t add up to what I had been told. The receipts I got were for less that the amount I had paid up. I asked for an explanation and for a very long time they tried to evade a direct answer. Somewhere in my aggressive questioning the truth came out. Basically they have to pay bribe to get the registration done. I demanded that I should at least be given a receipt for all the money I had paid up, even if it under the head of services delivered. Till date I am waiting for the receipt.
The bribe amount I paid to to get my new car registered in UP is about Rs. 3,000, which is about 15% of the registration amount. I am sure the amount you pay would vary depending on the car you buy.
Image source: Not sure who I can attribute the image to. It’s appears on far too many websites. Search images for “bribe in India”.
As shocking as this headline is, if you read the story you would realize that the person probably deserved to be fired from his job. Yes it sounds absurd that someone can be fired for being caught for taking a bribe of Rs. 15 only when the whole systems seems to reek with corruption. However when you read the following para you realize that the person deserved it.
The court took note of the fact that it was the third occasion when Pal indulged in such an act. On earlier two occasions, he was let off with minor punishments. Rejecting his plea for leniency, the HC said: “Leniency has its limit. Mercy cannot be shown to the undeserved.”
I mean if you can be stupid enough to be caught thrice for taking bribe, you deserve to be kicked out.
Hues of Life 