Imagine a stadium filled to the brim – that’s 1,15,203 complaints! If each complaint was a candy, that’s more than the number of candies you’d get trick-or-treating for a whole decade (or even more!). And guess who were the kings and queens of the complaint kingdom? The Union home ministry, the Indian Railways, and the banks. They sat on thrones of 46,643, 10,580, and 8,129 candies, respectively.

Let’s go back a step……In 2022, our not-so-secret detectives, aka the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC), uncovered some eyebrow-raising shenanigans. Picture this: a swarm of bees, but instead of honey, they were buzzing with complaints! And these weren’t just any complaints, but corruption complaints. Yikes!

Ok, time to move on with the story!

Candy-Coated Corruption!

• Now, these many candies can’t be eaten at once! So, out of the sweet complaint heap, 85,437 were gobbled up (or, you know, addressed). The rest? 29,766 are still sitting there, with 22,034 having collected dust for more than three months.
• Now, Central Vigilance Commission, being the wise detective it is, set a rule: “Hey chief vigilance officers! You’ve got three months to finish your candy!” They are kinda like the watchful parents who make sure you don’t overeat (or in this case, overlook).
• Beyond the big players, there were smaller but equally important candy stacks. The Delhi government folks had 7,370, the housing and urban affairs ministry had 4,710, and there were others in the coal, labour, and petroleum ministries too. It’s like a full-blown candy shop out there!
• Breathe in and out, because here we go again: CBDT had 2,150, defence had 1,619, telecommunications department had 1,308… you get the drill. It’s like every government department had its own flavor of candy!
• Insurance companies, the personnel, public grievances and pensions ministry, and the steel ministry all had their own bowls of candy complaints too. Seems like almost everyone wanted a piece of this sweet (or rather bittersweet) pie.
• When we look at the big picture, a question arises: Why so many candies (read: complaints)? Is there a candy-making machine (corruption) that’s gone haywire?
• To wrap it up, 2022 was a roller-coaster year in the candy-complaint land. While some were addressed quickly, others lingered on. And while candies can be sweet, too many of them (especially of the complaint variety) can lead to a tummy ache for our system.
• It’s high time we find a way to reduce these candies and enjoy a healthier, less corrupt nation. Remember, it’s fun to have candies, but too many can be a sticky mess!