Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari has accepted that he himself feels ashamed that it took over nine months to get clearance for an automated multi-level parking lot in a government building in which even the Prime Minister was interested in the project. The less said the better about projects where the common people are involved which progresses at a snail’s pace at the mercy of bureaucrats and people in charge of them. Corruption rules roost in our country and most of the cost escalation in infrastructure projects are on account of unreasonable delays for silly reasons inordinate to garner bribes and other corrupt practices. Builders today are committing suicide and the realty sector is in the doldrums because of such corrupt practices which has become the order of the day in today’s scenario where nothing moves without greasing palms and the stakes too are unreasonably high to get things done your way. It’s time for the court to intervene to stop this malpractice which literally has stalled the nation’s growth and progress. Time for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to bring about a change in the constitution as well which encourages transparency and fair means and a system that punishes the corrupt.
S.N. Kabra
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
