DNA Edit – Graft bomb: Revelation of a payoff suggests how deep the rot runs

Graft and Indian officialdom go hand in hand. In what appears to be the outlines of yet another scam, a New York Times report has claimed that when Boeing was preparing its new 787 Dreamliner rollout in 2006, it might have bribed some eight Indian officials to mine much-needed lightweight titanium from India. The charge is not just damaging, but also very specific, which makes it imperative upon the government to order an investigation. According to facts of the case, Boeing asked consulting firm McKinsey to evaluate a proposal to mine titanium in India. Astoundingly, the consulting firm advised Boeing to “respect traditional bureaucratic process”. And what was this process? It included payment of bribes! India is no stranger to graft, but for bribes to be acknowledged now as part of a legitimate business process and administrative decision making apparatus is a new high. Interestingly, the deal never went through, but Ukrainian oligarch Dmitry V Firtash, has been indicted on charges of directing $18.5 million in bribes to Indian officials for obtaining mining permits. 

The scene now moves to India, or more specifically Andhra Pradesh, where the bribes were reportedly paid to Indian officials. At the moment, it is far from clear who these officials are, but to be sure, some sort of probe is going to be initiated. But the larger issue is the existence of graft as a legitimate mode of conducting business in this country. Such bribes, which are fairly common place in conducting defence deals, have now spilled out into other sectors of the economy. Even though, it has to be said that in areas such as mining, such practices appear to be prevalent as the coal allocation case has revealed. Nevertheless, it does call for more transparency in deals that involve purchases and officials need to take care that their fair names – as well as that of the country – are not besmirched.