India and Corruption: 5 things Transparency Intl's report tells us

Corruption in public services is something many Indians can speak at length about. If someone hasn’t been asked to cough up money for a service, they know of someone who has and a new report by anti-corruption NGO Transparency International reveals the extent to which Indians are used to living with it. (Read the complete India findings here )

Armed with the responses of 1,025 respondents the Transparency International’s Global Corruption Barometer offers interesting insights into how Indians view corruption and how despite their idealism, believe a bribe may be the only way to get things done.

Indians are used to paying bribes:

A majority of Indians (around 63 percent) said they had been asked to pay a bribe and a slim majority (52 percent) among them said they had refused to pay it. The rest didn’t bother resisting. Most Indians surveyed (71 percent) believe that corruption has only gotten worse over the last year, the only thing they differ on is to what extent.

Indians don’t trust the media, but trust the government even less

When it comes to reporting corruption, despite around 41 percent believing that the media was also complicit in corruption, the largest number of the respondents preferred to inform the news media of incidents of corruption rather than the government body or the institution in which the corruption was taking place. So despite not trusting the media

Indians believe government services work only when you have influence

The study also offers an explanation about why Indians prefer to use the services of touts, middlemen or pretty much anyone who claims to have some form of personal influence in the government services. A whopping 66 percent of the respondents believe that personal influence does matter.

A small majority of the respondents, also believe that the country’s government is being run by a few ‘big entities’ acting in their own interests.

In India you’re most likely to bribe police, permit authorities 

And when it comes to the public services most Indians pay bribes for there are no surprises. Most respondents said that they had paid a bribe to the police, followed closely by registry and permit services.

After that Indians (48 percent) were most willing to pay bribes in order to secure public utilities and education. Despite enjoying a cleaner image in public, it turns out Indians also paid bribes to the judicial system and medical services.

Indians have no choice but to pay a bribe

The study also explains why despite outrage over the system of paying bribes, Indians finally just cough up the money. A majority of the respondents (around 36 percent) said it was the only way to obtain a government service while around 35 percent said it was the only way to speed the government machinery into action.

Most Indians surveyed say they are willing to fight the endemic corruption they are used to encountering in public services and believe that despite the government’s constant claims, there is insufficient action being taken to tackle it.

However, as long as basic services are denied and there is no efficient grievance mechanism, barring the media, the study also indicates why most Indians will always prefer to pay their way out.