Truckers pay bribes over Rs 22,000 crore a year

New Delhi, Feb 1 (UNI) In the midst of India's booming economy, corruption has flourished unabated to assume scandalous proportions with truckers paying bribes of over Rs 22,000 crore a year to various authorities, greatly undermining the trucking industry and fleecing consumers in the process.

''What is shocking is that this slush money is almost equal to the truck drivers' remuneration,'' said Transparency International (TI) India Chairman Admiral (retd) R H Tahiliani, while releasing a report called ''Rampant Corruption in Trucking Operations''.

The study, jointly carried out by TI India and Shriram Group, Chennai, points out that a truck operator pays Rs 211 to Rs 266 per day as bribe at toll plazas, check points, state borders or during en route stoppages on the pretext of checking documents.

''Based on this estimate, Rs 79,920 are paid annually by a single truck. With around 36 lakh trucks currently operational, total bribe amount works out to be more than Rs 22,000 crore a year,'' Admiral Tahiliani told reporters.

According to the report, this practice is highly institutionalised as the truck drivers get some kind of 'receipt' in the form of stickers and token to ensure their hassle-free movement.

The total share of regional transport office and police, the two key enforcement agencies, works out to be around 88 per cent (43 per cent and 45 per cent respectively) of the total bribe involved.

About 60 per cent of en route (forced) stoppages, consuming up to 11 hours in a day, by concerned authorities like RTO, police and forest, sales and excise, octroi, weight and measurement departments are for extorting money.

The study, conducted over 12 out of 16 major trucking hubs in the country, indicates that truckers are required to pay bribes at every single stage of their operations, which starts with getting registration and fitness certificates and continues through the issuance and renewal of inter-state and national permits.

Mr Alok Srivastava and Mr Arun Duggal, of the Sriram Group, said the reasons for paying bribes, while on the road, include plying overloaded trucks, traffic violations, parking at wrong places or entering in 'no entry zone'. Further, bribes are paid to avoid the payment of toll and other taxes like octroi and sales tax.

Lack of proper documents or use of alcohol by truck drivers are the other reasons for paying bribes.

Due to the largely unorganised nature of trucking operations -- 86 per cent comprise small entrepreneurs possessing 1 to 4 trucks -- assessment of the extent of corruption is a difficult one.

''However, its magnitude can be ascertained from the fact that transport accounts for 4.66 per cent of India's GDP, valued at Rs 32,000 crore. Trucking operation itself is worth Rs 1.18 lakh crore annually,'' they said.

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