Poll Analysis | Bribe to get your Birth Certificate
It is mandatory to register a new born within 60 days of birth. However this basic right of the Indian citizen has been changed into a business by the government officers. Complaints on our portal I Paid a Bribe are testimony to how the corrupt government officers loot money from the people.
A Bangalorean writing about his experience on our website says he had to pay Rs. 5000 to get the birth certificate for his child. He tried to obtain the birth certificate through an agent but all in vain. With no other options in hand, he approached the registrar directly. Even that didn't prove to be helpful. He finally paid a sum of Rs. 5000 as bribe to a government officer and procured the certificate within a day.
A citizen of Andhra Pradesh shared his miserable story where he had to pay Rs. 5000 to get his birth certificate which he needed for the processing of his Green Card application in the USA. He waited for three weeks to get his birth certificate without paying the bribe. He was eventually forced to pay the bribe.
We asked our readers. “Have you paid a bribe to a government officer to procure a birth certificate?” Forty percent of the respondents who voted accepted paying a bribe to get a birth certificate. Twenty eight percent resisted paying one. Thirteen percent of the readers said they knew someone who paid a bribe while the remaining 18 percent were not asked to do so.