Population Growth leads to Corruption Growth?

Population & Economic Growth

Since Independence of India, population has grown from 361.1 million in 1951 to 1210.2 million in 2011, an absolute increase by 849 million during the last 60 years. The net addition in population during this period has been increasing consistently, with over 2% increase per annum since 1951. Population is further expected to 1370 million by 2021, an increase of 160 million during the decade. Similarly, density of India was as low as 117 persons per sq. kilometre and this steadily increased from one decade to another to reach 382 in 2011. The persons living per sq. km. has increased by 216 per cent in the last sixty years.

This is a matter of great concern as it puts immense pressure on India’s natural resources (water, power, food, education, housing etc.) in general. It also adversely affects the quality of life of people as well as governance.

India's growth rate especially during the first 40 years after independence was low by standards of developing countries. In 1947, the average annual income in India was $439, compared with $619 for China and $770 for South Korea. By 2010, the respective numbers were $2,960, $6,020 and $28,120.

With the growing population, more persons per sq. kilometer is causing population explosion and break down of governance. Police per one lakh population is 137 at national level and 52.4 per 100 sq. km.

In addition, urbanization of population is causing additional stress – from 17% urban population in 1951 to 28% in 2001 (30% + in 2011). Due to this, we see population explosion in cities & urban towns.

Case for Corruption

As a result, the vast numbers of people competing for all kinds of services, leading to demand hugely outstripping supply, coupled with people's ignorance and therefore lack of power, enables corruption to flourish in India. Providers of any service can demand bribes for just doing their job, and the public are willing to pay "extra" to get that elusive service.

Additionally, people at lower spectrum do not bother about the law & order (be it crossing of roads, waiting for signals in crossing, following queues in public places etc), as they are too lowly in economic strata and Government do not have the wherewithal to enforce governance or take care of them. Many cases of thefts (small/big – pick pockets, chain snatching), ragging, molestations, rapes, murders do not get caught as police is too busy following up big cases & scams and do not have the time to follow through on these cases, which are petty in the scheme of things. This leads to law & order being partial and where there are chances, corruption (bribe) grows. Simply speaking, many of these cases do not even get registered and law of land is enforced (that is, for traffic signal breaking, traffic police shall pocket Rs.100/200 and close the case on spot, as against seizing license/vehicle and taking the case to mobile courts for normal justice of fine).

As they say, corruption breeds corruption. And one corrupt individual will lead to corrupting 100 additional persons. While some cases are supposedly petty in nature (like traffic policemen pocking few money), other cases are big and when explodes, becomes scams. In a society that is poor, unaware and divided, politicians can afford to launch all kinds of huge public projects, steal staggeringly large amounts of money, and leave the projects incomplete.

Stopping, or at the least curbing, corruption is important, but there are many ways to work towards that effort. Now, there are politicians, economists and bureaucrats who have gone on record to say corruption exists and should be legalized, which is like saying, murder is acceptable.

Path for redemption

This has the cascading effect of preventing economic and social development, with money meant for development gets pocketed by people in power and pittance are thrown for the actual development. When there is not enough grass root development – growth of infrastructure, education, health & sanitary in the country, this leads to further issue of investment drying up, with investors not keen to invest in India.

Economists have recognized important linkages between population and socio-economic development. Yet, the attention given to these linkages in current development thinking in India is not very clear. This is because one can argue that it is not rapid population growth but rather weak government, corruption and social injustices that are preventing economic and social development. The counter argument is that rapid population growth exacerbates the problems of weak government, corruption and social injustice. However, one has to recognize that population is an important factor in development, especially when it is growing seemingly out of control.

Having said all this, population growth cannot be reversed in short run and will have to be used as a factor for development. Also, other points of having strong government committed to growth of nation, reversing urbanization, ensure grass root development, improve infrastructure needs to be prioritized if India as a nation believes in being a developing nation and sees itself as being strong economically & fundamentally in long run.