India ranks 81st in 2017's Global Corruption Perception index
According to an index released by Berlin-based non-government organization Transparency International (TI) recently, India has been ranked 81st in the global corruption perception index for 2017. The index ranks 180 countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector corruption. In 2016, India was in the 79th place among 176 countries. Here's more about it.
Index scale's zero is highly corrupt, 100 is cleanest
The index also named the country among the "worst offenders" in terms of graft and press freedom in the Asia Pacific region. The index uses a scale of 0 to 100, where 0 is highly corrupt and 100 is very clean. India's score in the latest ranking, however, remained unchanged at 40. In 2015, the score was 38.
Philippines, India, the Maldives among the worst regional offenders
The organization said, "In some countries across the Asia Pacific region, journalists, activists, opposition leaders and staff of law enforcement or watchdog agencies are threatened, and even murdered." It further added, "Philippines, India and the Maldives are among the worst regional offenders in this respect. These countries score high for corruption and have fewer press freedoms and higher numbers of journalist deaths."
15 journalists working on corruption stories killed in six years
As reported by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), in the last six years, these countries witnessed the murder of 15 journalists working on corruption stories. In the latest ranking New Zealand and Denmark were placed the highest, with scores of 89 and 88. On the other hand, Syria, South Sudan and Somalia were ranked lowest with scores of 14, 12 and 9, respectively.
What did the organization's MD say on the ranking?
Transparency International Managing Director Patricia Moreira said, "No activist or reporter should have to fear for their lives when speaking out against corruption. Given current crackdowns on both civil society and the media worldwide, we need to do more to protect those who speak up."
