Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 30 (SocialNews.XYZ) Time appears to be running out for corrupt government officials in Kerala, with the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) stepping up surveillance and turning to technology to track officials suspected of taking bribes.
The Vigilance has prepared a list of officials for scrutiny, with more than 200 of them placed in the red category for closer monitoring.
Officials in the Revenue, Local Self Government and Motor Vehicles departments form a major part of the list.
The intensified action is part of Project Zero, the statewide anti-corruption campaign of the Vigilance.
The agency was now tracking not only officials but also the methods used to receive illegal payments.
Corrupt officials were changing their ways, with digital transactions increasingly replacing cash payments.
The Vigilance has detected cases in which bribe money was routed through intermediaries to bank accounts linked to relatives of officials.
In some instances, payments were found to have been made to the accounts of daughters of officials studying abroad.
Benami transactions are also under the scanner as the agency seeks to track the flow of illegal money.
The Vigilance will now use Artificial Intelligence to monitor government officials and examine the movement of files.
Unusual patterns in file movement or official activity could trigger closer surveillance.
The latest drive comes after the government overhauled the Vigilance Manual in July this year after nearly 24 years.
Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan and Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala have time and again pointed out that corruption will not be tolerated at any cost.
The revised manual was introduced to bring the state's anti-corruption machinery in line with changing methods of corruption, particularly those involving digital payments and technology-driven financial transactions.
It provides detailed procedures for investigating online financial transactions, benami assets and assets disproportionate to known sources of income.
The government has also sought to strengthen internal vigilance in departments and public sector undertakings.
Surprise inspections will be intensified and departments have been directed to promptly report corruption complaints to the Vigilance.
The new manual also seeks to make Vigilance investigations more professional.
The Vigilance is also strengthening its district-level machinery, with District Vigilance Superintendents of Police expected to play a bigger role in the anti-corruption campaign.
With the Vigilance now combining field surveillance with digital tracking and Artificial Intelligence, officials under suspicion face a more closely monitored working environment.
Source: IANS
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