According to the CMS-India Corruption Study 2017: Perception and Experience with Public Services & Snapshot View for 2005-17, please click here to access:

• Between 2005 and 2017, there is a definite decline in both perception and experience of citizens about corruption in availing public services.

• The 11th round of annual CMS-ICS 2017 brings out that nearly 43 percent of the households across 20 states feel that the level of corruption in public services has increased during the last one year in their respective states. Compared to the scenario about 12 years back, the perception has improved for good i.e. a dip of around 30 percentage points is observed (in 2005, 73 percent of the households had perceived increase in corruption level).

• More than half (56 percent) feel that the level of corruption decreased in public services during demonetization phase (November-December 2016).

• As per CMS-ICS 2017, around one-third of the households in 20 states experienced corruption in public services at least once during the last one year. Compared to this, as per the findings of CMS-ICS 2005, the percentage of households which experienced corruption in public services was more than half (53 percent).

• The states where percentage of households experiencing corruption in 2017 round was more than ‘combined state average’ of 31 percent are Karnataka (77 percent), Andhra Pradesh (74 percent), Tamil Nadu (68 percent), Maharashtra (57 percent), J&K (44 percent), Punjab (42 percent) and Gujarat (37 percent).

• States where percentage of households experiencing corruption in public services is in single digit, i.e. less than 10 percent, include Himachal Pradesh (3 percent) and Kerala (4 percent) only.

• Almost all households, across 20 states, who were asked to pay bribe by the public servants, had no option but to pay bribe to avail the service.

• Denial of public services because households could not pay a bribe was most reported in Land record/ Housing (3.5 percent), followed by Police (1.8 percent). 

• Households have paid as low as INR 20 to get their ration in PDS shops or to get admission form from a government school and as high as around INR 50,000 for admission in a government school or to get an early date for hearing of their case in a court. 

• The total amount paid by households across 20 states and 10 public services as bribe is estimated to be INR 6,350 crore (63,500 million) as against INR 20,500 crore in 2005. 

• Though 58 percent of the common citizens are aware about RTI Act; those seeking information under RTI Act was less than 1 percent, even after more than a decade of the law coming into force.