Vigilance means to remain watchful and alert about what is happening and what will happen. It is observed that people always have wrong approach towards vigilance as they perceive it as enquiry, fixing responsibility etc. However watchfulness is not investigation but prevention. To punish and not to prevent is like pumping the water through a pump without arresting the leakages which result in wastage of water, energy and time. Vigilance is the balancing force, which plays in tandem with an objective of Good Governance. Thus it plays a proactive and positive role in good governance which helps in preventing corruption both in public and private sectors.
Today corruption has reached such alarming proportions in India that it has undermined the foundations of democratic governance. Corruption undermines good governance, distorts public policy, leads to wastage of resources and hampers development. It is ruining the very basis of the policy built with abounding faith and sincerity by Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru. Corruption is now one of the major threats to Indian democracy and it is rapidly eroding the social structure.
Moral values are extremely important for our overall well-being. Positive moral values are important because they allow us to have an overall feeling of peace and joy. Moral values can give meaning and purpose to our life. When we live our life according to principles that are based on honesty, compassion, courage, modesty, and forgiveness, then we are able to form positive bonds with other people. Incorporating the principle of honesty in our life makes us trustworthy. In addition to honesty, we also need to incorporate the moral value of compassion into our life. Compassion allows us to have sympathy for the misfortunes of other people. Courage gives us the determination to face anything that impedes our progress through life. When courage is one of our moral values, we can bravely face the world. Ethics allow us to live our life in a manner that we can be proud of. The bonds that we form with others will also be more fulfilling because we live our life according to honesty, compassion, courage, modesty and forgiveness. Forgiveness allows us to move past hurtful or damaging situations. It allows us to abandon feelings of anger or resentment against others or ourselves.
Mahatma Gandhi rightly said “Good ethics is good business”. “Non-corporation with the evil is as much a duty as is co-operation with good”. Albert Einstein said “We should be men of values rather than men of success.” Winston Churchill said, “We should extend values beyond our homes.”
Ethics is important not only in business but in all aspects of life because it is the vital part and the foundation on which the society is built. It refers to a code of conduct that guides an individual in dealing with others. Business ethics is a form of applied ethics or professional ethics that examines ethical principles and moral or ethical problems that arise in a business environment. It deals with issues regarding the moral and ethical rights, duties and corporate governance between a company and its shareholders, employees, customers, media, government, suppliers and dealers. Warren Buffet said “Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.”
(This is the first part of the article and the remaining portion will continue tomorrow)
Vinod Chandrashekar Dixit
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
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