In America, all sectors of businesses and economies are
able to flourish due to an open market and laws that are enforced to protect
fair business practices and a competitive economy. Knowing a government
official won’t normally result in any one person being able to obtain a large
section of our nations precious resources because the government has so many
procedures in place preventing any one person from having enough power to make
such a significant impact. The same cannot be said for India’s government. With
politicians that are so easily faltered by bribes to make the own fortunes,
promises to the nations people cannot be carried through.
A
connection with Vija Darda, a Member of Parliament, led to Manoj Jayaswal’s
acquisition of undeveloped coal fields. With almost all their donations coming
from sectors of the economy involving mining, power, and all those involved in
natural resources, Politicians have come to be known for their “venal”
behaviors and willingness to work with members of society involved in this
area. This acquisition gave Mr. Jayaswal a competitive advantage in the business
of coal mining. He quickly became wealthy and in this way, Mr. Darda was able
to reap benefits as well. While it is clearly unethical to hand over such
precious resources to your friends with no concern for those willing to fight
fairly for that right, Mr. Jayaswal may see it morally as a way to help his
economy by making a profit and increasing his country’s power source. By making
his connections with political figures and contributing to India’s growth, he
feels he was justified in his start in the coal mining business.
While
attempts are being made to help the faltering economy, this will not fix the
problems that still exist by any means. What India needs is a solid
governmental party that can be trusted to represent them and do right by the
country as a whole. Good leaders in any business will look at the needs of the
company over their own personal desires. This ethical principle holds just as
much, if not more in a governmental environment. Trust and faith in the
government is detriment to its success. The need for a fair economy and fair
competition needs to take priority for these politicians over the temptations
of bribes that are selfish and only benefit a select few and hurting the
general public.
India’s
leaders pledged to bring power to every corner of the country and part of this
pledge involved expanding coal-fired power plants. India can never expect to
solve the country’s problems if they cannot keep promises because they are “too
busy” getting involved with unethical and immoral business activities. 300
million people are without electricity in India and the numbers will just
continue to get worse as scandals continue.
While
it is not easy to completely change how a company, or in this case the
government runs, I believe it is possible to make the necessary changes. These
changes however, will require the cooperation of all members of the government.
Rules must be made and enforced. Procedures must be followed and figures that
represent the government must be held accountable for their actions. All must
be expected to make decisions with the interest of society as the main
priority. Members who are likely to fall for bribery attempts must be
eliminated and faith must be restored amongst the people of India.
