The YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government is cracking the whip on corruption in the revenue department. Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has been conducting raids on revenue offices across the state. On September 3, ACB officials raided major revenue offices in Krishna district. Unauthorized cash to the tune of Rs 2.40 lakh was seized during a raid on Ibrahimpatnam revenue office.
An amount of Rs 4,000 was found during a raid at Jaggayyapeta revenue office. Raids are also being carried out in Vijayawada, Srikakulam and Visakhapatnam. Registrations have been halted for the last four months owing to Covid-19, but since the last 10 days registration of lands, houses, flats and plots are picking up slowly. The government believes this revival has led to surge in corruption too.
Walking in Telangana’s footsteps
In neighbouring Telangana, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhara Rao has targeted corruption in revenue department. ACB officials have been conducting raids and seizing huge amounts of ill-gotten money from the revenue officials. Jagan is also said to be following the Telangana example. He thinks besides sending a warning signal to corrupt officials, it will also enhance his image.
Cleansing Corruption
Apart from revenue, Jagan government is trying to make police, panchayat raj and other important departments corruption-free. These are the departments which deal with the issues of people directly. Besides improving the image of the government, cleansing them of corruption will also result in increased revenue to the exchequer.
The government is of the view that rampant corruption in the revenue department is causing loss to the exchequer. The revenue officials are sharing the proceeds of this corruption. The government has decided to plug this hole and raise the revenue to the exchequer.
The government feels employees in the revenue department get more through corrupt practices than salary. Graft has struck its roots deep into the department for years. It thinks it is justified to attach the properties of corrupt officials. Hence, the government has now started the cleansing process with the revenue department and plans to take it to other key wings later.
