NEW DELHI, July 17: Concerned over instances of large-scale corporate frauds, the Central Vigilance Commission is considering to recommend classes on corporate ethics and anti-corruption measures in professional and technical institutes including business schools.
The anti-corruption watchdog has emphasised upon the need of such programmes in various in-house discussions and seminars to make young entrepreneurs aware of the menace of corruption in corporate world.
“The Commission strongly favours lessons on ethics and anti-corruption in colleges and universities providing professional and technical education, including business and computer sciences. The Commission will make a plan for it,” a CVC official said.
He said youngsters in colleges must be made aware on the menace of corruption while they are being trained for professional world.
“It will help in maintaining corporate India more responsible and deter an individual to indulge in unethical practices like bribery,” the official said.
The probity watchdog has already recommended anti-graft lessons for children in schools.
Of late, the Commission has noticed many instances where private firm officials were either bribing or abetting government officials to misuse their official positions for benefiting them.
“While, there are laid down rules to punish a dishonest government servant, private workers on the other hand don’t have any supervision to check their involvement in corrupt practices. The Commission feels that making youngsters in colleges aware on the menace of corruption will help in tackling the problem to a great extent,” he said.
Official said the Commission will discuss the matter with All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE), University Grants Commission (UGC) and other regulatory bodies to devise a road-map.
It is pertinent to mention that capital market regulator Sebi, which regulates thousands of listed companies, has late last year rejected a proposal for donning the role of an anti-corruption watchdog for private companies saying it was not within its mandate under the existing legal framework.
Central Vigilance Commissioner Pradeep Kumar has recently suggested lessons on business ethics and corporate social responsibility in B-schools to check corruption which weans away domestic and foreign investments.
“Ethics are integral to one’s professional skills. Professional competence without ethics is like a knife without a handle. Young Indians, whether in industry or in business schools, must be exposed to business ethics, corporate governance and corporate social responsibility,” Kumar had said in a conference in Bangalore.
Kumar has said that ethics should become an integral part of work culture and people’s lives and emphasised upon change in value system to uproot corruption from the society.
“Corruption after all is a form of human behaviour, which reflects social values. Corruption would end only if our society imbibes ethical values. School and family play a very important role in this regard,” the CVC has said.
The government is also considering a legislation to make bribery and acts of corruption by foreign public officials punishable in the country. (PTI)
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