Introduce basic norms of corporate governance into the entire process of budget making and then see the difference it can make
It is quite easy to throw the baby out with the bathwaterwhen it comes to taking radical policy decisions. Sure, banning the budget is an attractive idea and will once and for all stop the pernicious practice of governments using the budgets as crude instruments of politics to buy their way into votebanks. For sure, banning the budget will stop finance ministers from acting like feudal overlords doling out favours to the favoured and denying privileges to those out of favour. Yet, the fact of the matter is that the government needs to spend money on defence, internal security, physical and social infrastructure and sundry other things that make up a modern nation state. The question is: if we do away with the budget, how then does the government spend the hundreds of thousands of crores that need to be spent each year? Is there a better way of spending government money that will minimise leak, wastage, corruption, inefficient allocation of resources and downright loot by politicians & bureaucrats?
There is a very simple, attractive, practical & workable solution available to policy makers if they are really serious about making every rupee spent on government programmes worth its while. Till the early 20th century, the robber barons of the United States did pretty much what they pleased – killing competition, making monopoly profits, swindling retail investors with impunity and bribing officials to change policies to suit their own corporate interests. In many ways, as the 2001 Enron scandal and many subsequent scandals have shown, corporate greed is a monster that is tough to tame. Yet, over the years, activist investors, an alert media and regulatory bodies like US Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) have ensured that unethical corporate barons find it increasingly hard to fleece the investors and milk the markets. More importantly, as the examples of Kenneth Lay & Martha Stewart show, corporate democracy has ensured that greedy corporate hucksters are sent well and truly behind bars when they are caught with their hand in the till.
It is quite easy to throw the baby out with the bathwaterwhen it comes to taking radical policy decisions. Sure, banning the budget is an attractive idea and will once and for all stop the pernicious practice of governments using the budgets as crude instruments of politics to buy their way into votebanks. For sure, banning the budget will stop finance ministers from acting like feudal overlords doling out favours to the favoured and denying privileges to those out of favour. Yet, the fact of the matter is that the government needs to spend money on defence, internal security, physical and social infrastructure and sundry other things that make up a modern nation state. The question is: if we do away with the budget, how then does the government spend the hundreds of thousands of crores that need to be spent each year? Is there a better way of spending government money that will minimise leak, wastage, corruption, inefficient allocation of resources and downright loot by politicians & bureaucrats?
There is a very simple, attractive, practical & workable solution available to policy makers if they are really serious about making every rupee spent on government programmes worth its while. Till the early 20th century, the robber barons of the United States did pretty much what they pleased – killing competition, making monopoly profits, swindling retail investors with impunity and bribing officials to change policies to suit their own corporate interests. In many ways, as the 2001 Enron scandal and many subsequent scandals have shown, corporate greed is a monster that is tough to tame. Yet, over the years, activist investors, an alert media and regulatory bodies like US Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) have ensured that unethical corporate barons find it increasingly hard to fleece the investors and milk the markets. More importantly, as the examples of Kenneth Lay & Martha Stewart show, corporate democracy has ensured that greedy corporate hucksters are sent well and truly behind bars when they are caught with their hand in the till.
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
Zee Business Best B-School Survey 2012
Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri’s Session at IMA Indore
IIPM IN FINANCIAL TIMES, UK. FEATURE OF THE WEEK
IIPM strong hold on Placement : 10000 Students Placed in last 5 year
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society….
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM makes business education truly global
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM B-School Facebook Page
IIPM Global Exposure
IIPM Best B School India
IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM Links
IIPM : The B-School with a Human FaceProf. Arindam Chaudhuri’s Session at IMA Indore
IIPM IN FINANCIAL TIMES, UK. FEATURE OF THE WEEK
IIPM strong hold on Placement : 10000 Students Placed in last 5 year
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society….
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM makes business education truly global
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM B-School Facebook Page
IIPM Global Exposure
IIPM Best B School India
IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM Links
