AP Govt mulling programme to end corruption

Hyderabad, Jan 2 (UNI) The Andhra Pradesh Government is considering to implement a programme to eradicate corruption from a district in a year and replicate the same in other districts, in phases, state Home Minister K Jana Reddy said today.

Taking part in the 47th 'formation day' celebrations of the Anti-Corruption Bureau, the minister accepted a suggestion from Dr S Subramanian, a former IPS officer, and said he would actively pursue with Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, taking up the programme.

Through demonstration effect, its impact would spread across the state and the entire country, he hoped.

Stating that corruption was rampant in the revenue department at the grassroots level, ACB Director General R R Girish Kumar urged the Government to adopt and improve the Karnataka model of computerised land administration to prevent corruption.

Stating that conviction of ACB cases by Special Courts, constituted for the purpose, was 64 per cent during 2007, the Minister dismissed as ''incorrect'' the view that the ACB was targetting only lower level officials. Cases were registered against 198 Gazetted and 387 non-Gazetted officers during 2007, he added.

In a message read out on the occasion, the Chief Minister assured the ACB sleuths to renew the special incentive of 30 per cent of pay and sanctioned an exclusive building for the ACB.

Earlier, Mr Subramaniam suggested, among other things, creation of the institution of 'Lok Pal' and bringing under its purview, all political functionaries and provision of functional autonomy to ACB.

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