Causes of Corruption and Anti-Corruption Initiatives in India

Abstract

In this paper we try to investigate the causes of corruption have identified several factors which may have an impact on corruption, ranging from structural factors, to institutional, historical, and economic factors. However, there are not many country level studies exploring causes of corruption in specific contexts. In the case of India, corruption in the country is likely to be facilitated by a number of factors, such as large amounts of public resources derived from natural resources, vested interests and politically connected networks, poorly paid civil servants, low regulatory quality, and weak judicial independence. In addition, local officials are given wide discretionary power and resources without proper accountability and enforcement mechanisms. Based on the above, anti-corruption reforms in the country could focus on enhancing institutional capacity and reduce clientelistic practices in order to ensure that the rules are followed and applied equally among all citizens. Moreover, strengthening accountability at the local level is key for the success of decentralization reforms and to prevent corruption at the local level.