In India, whenever some new project is announced with much fanfare and foundation stones laid by local political bigwigs, the knowledgeable will know that there is a bunch of smart operators, including the ubiquitous bureaucrat and a gang of politicians is making money out of that project. Actually, one does not even have to be knowledgeable to come to this conclusion. Ordinary people without any knowledge of how public finance is managed will conclude the same way. It is the dumb ones like me, who do not know how to get on the band wagon of the gravy train and skim some off the top.
No, I am not seeking a Guru to teach me how to undumb myself. I am referring to the gall of the people concerned that have got on the gravy train despite the funding coming from the World Bank, whose auditing of expenditure is more stringent. Here is a detailed news report in our venerable Indian Express.
I am however gratified that this is not a local phenomenon. Politicians and other vested interests seem to be the same in other more “advanced” countries. Since some of my readers live in the vicinity, this report in the Washington Post should be of some interest to them. They can feel glad that their vested interests are no less than ours.
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