5th Pillar

5th Pillar partners with SRM University at AARUUSH 2011

2011-09-11T23:04:00.001-04:00

5th Pillar was an 'Anti-Corruption NGO partner' at AARUUSH 2011, SRM University's Techno-Management festival. The inaugural was on Tuesday, 6th May at 3 pm, followed by a students rally within the sprawling SRM University campus, with student volunteers of the institute carrying banners, charts and placards of 5th Pillar along with few other participating NGOs. The festival organizers had provided a stall for 5th Pillar throughout the 4 days of the event.

There was a panel discussion on Wed 7th Sep on the topic "CORRUPTION FREE INDIA REALITY- YOUTH ROLE". It was conducted with 5th Pillar's inputs and summarizing at the end. Around 150 students joined 5th Pillar as student members, and more than 500 students have registered to be added to our volunteers/newsletter database. The festival organizing committee has promised to connect with us in the first week of October to brainstorm and kickoff the 5th Pillar SAC unit at SRM University.

Thanks to all the 5th Pillar team members- Mrs.K.R.Selvamani(State President-TN), Mr.Bhanu Kumar(Executive Director), Mr.Jayaselvan(Admin Manager-HQ), Mr.Natarajan(Ooralvaaimozhi, Tirunelveli Dt Cooridnator) Mr.Mohammed Moideen(Pudukkottai Dt Coordinator), Mr.Jaganathan(Programs & Chapter Coordinator), Ms.Sabitha(Executive Assistant-HQ), Bagyam(Admin Assistant-HQ), Ms.Priya Francis(Student volunteer from Ramanujar College of Engg), Ms.Hema Raju(Patron & supporter)..

And of course, all these would never have been possible but for all the wonderful leaders and volunteers of the AARUUSH team- Pallavi Bulusu, Varun Vijay, Harleen Kaur, Umasankar, Kirthika, Avani Bahuguna, Amrita, Aditya Katiyar, Bhargav, Pragya, Anusha, Neeraj, Urmeelan, Mukunda Priya, Indu Prakash, Mahati, Dhiren, Shrinjoy(forgive me if I left out anyone by chance). These people inspired me and the rest of the 5th Pillar team that went from Headquarters and they have reinforced our confidence in achieving our goal sooner than later. Their selfless attitude, commitment, sincerity, organizational skills and the clarity in execution was highly impressive. And all the above qualities were consistent throughout the festival and not just in spontaneous bouts of excitement that typically happens among many people. Kudos to the entire AARUUSH team and special thanks to all the student volunteers who facilitated the 5th Pillar campaign at the festival.

Regards,
Vijay Anand

5th Pillar motivates students & public of Coimbatore to form Human chain and sit on fast to urge the Government to implement the Lokpal Bill

2011-08-24T20:07:00.004-04:00

Today, 5^th day of 5^th Pillar’s indefinite fast in support of Anna Hazare’s fasting began with large number of students joining us and extending their support. Later the students and public formed a human chain supporting our indefinite fast nearby our venue at Presidents Hall, Avinashi Road, Coimbatore. As the time went nearly 5000 students from 36 different colleges got united and the human chain extended to more than 3 kms on either side of the road.

After the human chain, members of 5th Pillar and people from other organizations motivated the students with their valuable speech for eliminating corruption. Many students voluntarily shared their views about Janlokpal bill and their support for anti-corruption. Zero Rupee Notes were distributed to all participants and they pledged against corruption and signed the zero rupee note banner.

They also signed the 'Petition to PM' to request for implementing Anna Hazare’s Janlokpal bill. After that about 500 students sat with us for one day fast. Later 3 students Mr.Manikandan, Mr.Lingesh & Mr.Prasath decided to sit for indefinite fast with us. The day ended with inspiring the young minds on a "unified India free of corruption".

5th Pillar organizes hunger strike in Coimbatore under the banner "Coimbatore against Corruption"

2011-08-20T11:10:00.003-04:00

5^th Pillar organized a hunger strike on 19 August 2011 in Coimbatore in front of Hotel Tamil Nadu, under the banner “Coimbatore against Corruption” in which many organizations like ACM, AIMS INDIA, Annai Trust, Assoc. RTI & CSO of TN, Bharatha Vote Bank, Catalyst Trust, Coimbatore Consumer Action, Coimbatore-Peelamedu-Pollachi Consumer Voice, Eeram, FEDCOT, Helping Hearts, IC Centre for Governance, KEXWWS, KURAL, NACM, Sigaram, Velicham, Women’s Empowerment Trust took part. 200 students from many colleges took part in this protest and distributed the flier and voiced their opinion.

Vanitha Mohan-Managing trustee of Siruthuli inaugurated the event. Dignitaries of Coimbatore like Ms. Anusha Mahesh- CEO of Park Institution, Mr. Shankar Vanavarayar- National President of Young Indians (Youth body of CII), Mr. Mohan Sankar- Patron of 5^th Pillar & Chairman of Coimbatore consumer forum, Mr. Krishnan- President of Indian Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Mr. Pratap Gokuldas-Former Rotary Dst Governor, President of Gujarat Samaj, Mr. Kandasamy- President of CODISSIA took part in this protest and addressed the gathering. Student volunteers went around collecting signatures for the petition to the Prime Minister from the public.

Hunger strike will continue tomorrow, 20 August at 5^th Pillar’s office at 69 Barathi Park Road, 7^th Cross, Saibaba Colony, Coimbatore.

Mr. Vijay Anand- Co-founder & President of 5^th Pillar has started on indefinite fast from 11 AM on 19 August and will end the fast when Anna Hazare will end his fast. Mr. Rajkumar Velu- Director of Operations of 5^th Pillar, Coimbatore has begun his indefinite fast from 10 AM on 20 August. 5^th Pillar members , students and public will participate in relay fasting starting from 20 August.

Public are welcome to join the fast or take part in the signature campaign by visiting the 5^th Pillar office, Coimbatore. The petition to the prime Minister is attached below.

Zero Rupee Note ruffles a policeman in Chennai Airport

2011-04-22T16:45:00.000-04:00

On 22 April 2011, I took an auto to the Chennai Domestic Airport to board a flight at 10:40AM. The auto I was travelling on was stopped at the entrance of the Airport and I was asked to walk with my luggage all the way to the domestic airport. It was a long walk from the entrance and as I had my luggage, I asked the policeman the reason for him to stop all the vehicles at the entrance. I got a very offhandish reply from him saying that he is not the person to be questioned and he is simply following the instructions given to him by the Airport manager. I got out from the auto and handed over a Zero Rupee Note to him explaining that he can use it when someone asks him for a bribe when he needs to get a electricity or water connection for his residence. He looked intrigued by the note and I went on to tell him that when he hands this Zero Rupee Note to any authority he would get his services without having to pay the bribe and if there is some resistance or unwarranted delay he can contact the address indicated at the back of the Zero Rupee Note and action would be taken right away. I told him that we have chapters in all the districts of Tamil Nadu and also in major cities in India, and we would inform the vigilance department if we receive complaint from the public and follow up on the action. The policeman said that the auto can go inside and drop the passenger in the Domestic Airport entrance. This is a victory for the Zero Rupee Note and I feel happy to know that we are able to get our rights without having to indulge in confrontation and by just handing over a Zero Rupee Note and creating awareness that we have an organization to back up against corruption and bribery.

Thanks & Regards,

Vijay Anand

Anti-corruption Summit at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi, on April 27-28, 2011

2011-04-21T00:32:00.004-04:00

Dear Friends,

A cancerous strain has besieged the soul of India.

Amidst corruption woes that the country and its patriotic citizens have been reeling from, Transparency International India (TII) and 5th Pillar are hosting an anti-corruption Summit at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi, on April 27-28, 2011. As you may already be aware, TII is the India chapter of Transparency International, an international civil society organization headquartered in Berlin advocating transparency and ethical governance worldwide. 5th Pillar, a citizens' movement, was founded as a grass-roots initiative with a mission to enable and empower every citizen to seek transparency and accountability in governance.

In line with our desire to have a conference with very actionable outcomes, we have an agenda that covers topics such as the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) treaty ratification, empowering civil society coalitions against corruption, and 'Stolen Assets Recovery'. The Summit will be a convergence of many international and national domain experts, Youth voices, business visionaries, politicians, bureaucrats and grassroots development specialists. The Summit promises to be 2 days of inspiring talks, actionable ideas and aspirational forums…..with experts from the UN, World Bank, SHERPA (France) and more, including many national experts like Arun Maira, S.Y. Quraishi, Aruna Roy and more who will engage in interactive sessions with the audience. For more details, please visit the website www.freedomfromcorruption.in

We hope this convention, rather than being a one-time event, will signify a springboard for more engaged conversations, sustained collaborations and ACTION from all relevant constituencies. It is our desire that we ally, collaborate and bring together bright minds from around the country, harboring the aspirational spirit and fondness for the idea of a truly vibrant India that we want to see. In that spirit, we would like to invite you to attend this Summit.

--

Thanks and regards,
Shobila Kali

Director - 5th PILLAR

Are you against political parties using freebies in elections? PLEASE ACT & FORWARD

2011-04-10T22:39:00.001-04:00

Dear Friends,

Tamil Nadu residents have seen political parties competing in giving freebies to different sections of the voters to win the elections. What do you think of buying votes in the name of freebies? What do you think of receiving a gas cylinder or a grinder to vote a political party to power? Do you think political parties SMARTLY schemed the electoral system to gain power with out actually paying voters (you) in CASH. Do you think election commission should do something about this?

If you think its time to make a change, please follow these steps (takes ONLY10 minutes to complete) :

Sign the e-petition --- http://www.petitiononline.com/FREEBIES/petition.html
Send email to the following using the subject/body from https://sites.google.com/site/votersagainstfreebies/mail-ec-president:

Mr. Praveen Kumar , Tamilnadu Chief Electoral Officer (ceo@tn.gov.in)
Election Commission of India (feedback@eci.gov.in) or submit your grievance at http://eci.nic.in/eci_main/feed-back/feedback1.asp
Secretary to President of India - Dr. Christy Fernandez (christylfernandez@rb.nic.in)

File your grievance with President of India at http://helpline.rb.nic.in/GrievanceNew.aspx. Use the same subject/body from https://sites.google.com/site/votersagainstfreebies/mail-ec-president
Call the following people and leave your complaint:

Mr. Praveen Kumar, Tamil Nadu Chief Electoral Officer at 044-25670390
Dr. S. Y. Quraishi, Chief Election Commissioner in Delhi at 011-23717391 or 011-23717392 or 011-23717393
Dr. Christy Fernandez, Secretary to President of India at 011-23014055

For more information, please visit http://tinyurl.com/electionfreebies and http://www.facebook.com/electionfreebies

As a responsible citizen of Tamil Nadu and India, please FORWARD THIS EMAIL to all your contacts and help create a better society.

IMPORTANT: DO NOT WASTE THE POWER OF YOUR VOTE. SAY NO TO THE POLITICIANS WHO WANT TO BRIBE YOU.

Fwd: Vijay Anand, 5thPillar & Shyam, IAC started fast in support of Anna Hazare's fast unto death on Lok Pal bill

2011-04-07T11:56:00.001-04:00

Dear All

Vijay Anand, 5thPillar & Shyam, IAC have started an indefinite fast on
7th April 2011 at 7pm, in front of Hotel Tamil Nadu, Coimbatore in
support of Anti corruption crusader Anna Hazare's indefinite fast unto
death for reforms on the Lok Pal bill.

Kindly show your solidarity and visit the fasting venue as a token of
support and those interested can also join the fast.

Thanks and regards
Suresh Kumar
Program Coordinator
5th Pillar, Coimbatore Chapter
Cell: 94438 41602

APRIL 2011 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE ARTICLE

2011-03-23T08:14:00.001-04:00

Workshop on best practices held at Trivandrum on the 5th and 6th of March, 2011

2011-03-08T12:37:00.001-05:00

Mr. Banu Kumar Executive Director of 5th Pillar attended the Regional Workshop on the theme, "Five Years of RTI Act, and Looking Ahead, held at Institute of Management , Trivandrum on the 5th and 6th of March, 2011. Dr. Prabhakaran, I.AS , Chief Secretary, Govt, of Kerala, inaugurated the workshop and the following people attended the workshop:

Mr. T.K.Manoj Kumar, Director, IMG

Mr. K.S. Sripathy, Chief Information Commissioner, Tamilnadu.

Smt. Minnie Mathew I.AS Special Chief Secretary, Govt. of A.P.

Dr. Amitha Prasad, I.AS Director General ATI, Mysore.

Dr. K..Rajagopal, Chief Information Commissioner, Kerala

Dr K.G. Verma, Director, RTI, DOPT, Govt, of India.

Mr. K.N. Venkatraman, IAS Secretary,P &AR, Govt, of Tamilnadu.

Around 40 participants from all over the southern States attended the Workshop. After the inaugural session in the morning. Papers on different subjects were presented in the forenoon Session. The paper and presentation by 5th Pillar , got the second best paper award. During the presentation, Mr.Banu Kumar explained the activities of the 5th Pillar, with special reference to RTI and distributed Zero Rupee notes to all the participants.

Event on electoral integrity - March 6th, 2011

2011-03-07T10:37:00.000-05:00

Dear Team,
Forum for Electoral Integrity organised a day long workshop for the field activists of various civil society organisations to conduct free and fare elections. The meeting started at 9.30 am and came to an end at 4.00 PM. About 130 activists from all over TN belong to various NGO;s participated and the event was widely covered by media. -- Zero Rupee Notes, fliers, stickers(vote is not for sale) and details about (model code of conduct) MCC and election expendiure(EE) were distributed.

Mr M G Devasagayam, convener informed that the forum has been formed to combat money and muscle power in the elections.
Mr S P Ambrose told that this is the final chance for us to restore the dignity our Tamil Nadu laost in the recent by elections.
Mr N Gopalaswamy former CEC explained about the source for the freebies given to the public and also clarified all the queries raised by the participants.
Mr Dsikan, consumer association of india also spoke.
Mr V V Rao from APEW narrated his experince in the last elections.
Mr Nareshgupta, former CEO TN made a ppt on model code of conduct(MCC) and election expendiure(EE) monitoring instructions issued by EC.
Mr N L Raja, High court advocate, A Subramani 5th pillar and Mr Paadam A Narayanan explained about the role of civil society in enforcing the codes, rules and instructions and effective IEC mechanism to be used in the elections.
Mr Sudarshan Padmanabhan, asst prof IIT(convener TNEW) spoke about bthe report re;eased by ADR/NEW about the candidates details contested in 2006 elections.
A group discussion was held with the following as panelists to work out an action plan. Mr Suresh (PUCL), Mr Elango(Koothambakkam) Ms Sheelu(Womens committee ) Ms Deepa mala(hand in hand).

It has been decided to form a state level committee to coordinate with civil society, government,media and to take care of legal aspects. The SLC in turn will form district level committees to monitor and report the violations of MCC and EE instructions to the CEO for taking action.

National Election Watch- Press release: A Comprehensive Bill to regulate working of political parties discussed at the conference along with ICAI guidelines for IT returns of political parties [5 Attachments]

2011-02-14T11:42:00.000-05:00

Dear Friends,

Thanks again to those of you who came in large numbers to the conference at Chennai. More than 1000 people attended the conference in the two days.

Here are the highlights of the 7th National Conference on Electoral and Political reforms held by ADR and National Election Watch, of which 5th Pillar is a constituent organization apart from several other NGOs.

A comprehensive draft bill on regulation of political parties being drafted under the guidance of former Chief Justice of India, Mr Venkatachaliah introduced in the conference
Institute of Chartered Accountants of India(ICAI) guidelines on income tax returns presented to the political parties
Representatives of DMK, AIADMK, INC, MDMK, PMK and other parties give broad support to these initiatives
The following resolutions passed at the 7^th National Conference on Electoral and Political Reforms

The NGOs and civil society organizations resolved to work in a non-partisan, ethical and transparent manner.
They endorsed the need for a comprehensive Bill on Reform of Political parties
They endorsed the 27 recommendations prepared by National Election Watch (NEW) and Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) on electoral and political reform.
They recognized the emerging threat of control of the State and Government by money power and strongly opposed it.

Please find attached the following documents along with the press release:

1. The document sent by NEW and ADR to Law Ministry and ECI with 27 recommendations.

2. Background paper on "Need for a comprehensive Law to regulate functioning of Political Parties"

3. The draft of Political Parties (registration and regulation of Affairs, etc) Act, 2011, drafted under the guidance of former CJI Mr Venkatachaliah

4. Recommendations of the ICAI on reporting framework of Political Parties

The other documents distributed at the conference are on our website:

http://www.adrindia.org/Miscellaneous/Content-Miscellaneous/document-related-to-conference.html

5 of 5 File(s)

Press Note _14_NEWFinal.doc

reforms v4.2.pdf

BACKGROUND PAPER CONCEPTUAL (1).docx

Parliment Bill.doc-part 1 (4).doc

Recommendations of the ICAI on Reporting Framework of Political Partie.pdf

7th National Conference on Electoral and Political Reforms

2011-02-11T02:14:00.000-05:00

Date: Feb 12 and 13, 2011

Venue: IITM Chennai

5th Pillar along with other organizations is hosting the Conference. This along with the Political Party Watch programme is aimed at the introduction of transparency and accountability mechanisms in the electoral and political system of the country. The conference mainly focuses on the declarationof the assets and criminal record of candidates during elections and recently in the disclosure of IT returns of political parties. The country is witnessing a decrease in the percentage of candidates with criminal records from 20% to about 14% in the Assembly elections held in 2008 and leaders of major political parties, have expressed the need to decriminalize politics. However, our journey has only begun. These Annual Conferences are an attempt to synchronize all our efforts and to build upon the energies of various stakeholders who have worked on the same issues at different levels. Previous Conferences were held in Ahmedabad (2003), Bangalore (2004), Patna (2006), Lucknow (2007) Mumbai (2008) and Bhopal (2010). Delegates to the Chennai conference will include organizations from all States of India participating in the National Election Watch (NEW) campaign, eminent citizens, media persons, bureaucrats and leaders from various political parties.

The focus of this Conference will be on sharing experiences of the Bihar Assembly elections and in that light discussions on the forthcoming elections in Assam, Pondicherry, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal. Special sessions are planned on ‘Political Party Reforms’, ‘Strengthening of the Electoral System’ and ‘Prevention of Misappropriation of Funds during Election Campaigns’. The National Election Watch groups from each state, NGOs and youth will share their experience based on year long consultations in their respective states by the Election Watch groups.

At the end of two days, Resolutions on Electoral and Political reforms are expected to be passed and a comprehensive ‘Declaration on Electoral and Political Reforms’ is expected to be brought out.

We encourage you to attend the conference with your friends and family. Free Admissions. Click here to register.

Electoral Integrity meeting at Cuddalore

2011-01-25T11:47:00.003-05:00

5th Pillar Cuddalore organised the meeting on behalf of Forum For Electoral Integrity in Cuddalore. The meeting was held at Town Hall Cuddalore. About 100 people from various walks of life(Cuddalore, Virudachalam, Pondy) participated. Mr. Jayachandran, Ex MLC presided over the meeting and Mr.N.L. Raja, Mr. Paadam A Narayanan and Mr.Subramani Director Operations of 5th Pillar addressed the gathering. Mr. Hemachandran, IAS (retd) former Chief Election Officer of Pondy and Mr. Kalivarathan IPS (retd) who are a part of Peoples Pulse, which helps the citizens to use RTI Act from Pondy were one among the dignitaries. At the end, the dignitaries clarified all the queries raised by the participants. Mr. Siva Ilango and Ms. Geetha from MSK, Ms. Chitrakala,(SAC), Mr. Sakthivel (Pondy) and Mr. Vinod (Dharmapuri) also attended. The event was widely covered in the local print media. Mr.Santhanamurthy our chapter coordinator coordinated the meeting.

Please take a look at the Photos by clicking on the following link

http://picasaweb.google.com/5thpillar/ECICuddaloreMeet?feat=content_notification#

Electoral integrity meeting at Loyola college

2011-01-24T12:37:00.004-05:00

A meeting was convened by Forum for Electoral Integrity by the students of OUT REACH Department of Loyola college on Thursday 20th Jan 2011. There were two sessions, one in the morning between 10 am and 12 noon and another in the afternoon between 2 and 4 pm. About 500 students participated in each session. The program was organised for spreading the message of free and fair elections through students who are planning to conduct camps in 200 slums and villages.

Mr. Devasagayam, Mr.S.P. Ambrose, Mr.N.L. Raja, Mr. Padam A Narayanan participated and spoke about the role of students in the ensuing elections, Mr. Naresh Gupta explained the various procedures of enrolling as voter and getting EPIC (Electors Photo Identity Card) with a Power point Presentation. Mr. Subramani spoke about 5th Pillar's involvement in the reform process with (ppt on incomplete india and break the silence) which was appreciated by all the students and dignitaries.

Mr. Praveen Kumar CEO TN and Ms. Amutha Addl.CEO also present and clarified all the queries raised by students. Fr, Anto, Director of Outreach Department, Mr. Gladstone Xavier Asst Profesor, Prof. Shanmugavelayutham of Loyola actively participated in the meeting.

It has been decided by the forum to conduct more such meetings in various colleges in the city and also in other places before the assembly elections.

Freedom from corruption Events for the month of January

2011-01-24T05:51:00.001-05:00

1. 20.1.2011: Subramani and Pugazh participated in an Event organised at Loyola College on Electoral Reforms. Eminent Activists like Mr. Devasahayam, Ambrose, Naresh Gupta, Menzies, Raja, Padam Narayan , Praveen Kumar, and Mrs Amudha, participated in the day long sessions. The meeting discussed about holding honest elections free from Muscle power and money power. 0 Rupee notes and hand outs prepared by 5th Pillar were distributed in the event to the students and the V.I.P.'s
Around 500 students participated in the event. which was held at Saulier Hall. of the College

2. 21.1.2011: Executive Director, with Jayasselvan, participated in an event organised by Jain's College for Women, Vepery,Chennai. A one hour session was conducted with transparencies on Freedom from Corruption and RTI. 150 students of MBA, and the faculties of the Management attended the session. 0 Rupee notes and fliers were distributed to the participants.

3. 22,1.2011: Subramani with Pugazh attended the meeting on Electoral Reforms at Cuddalore. Jayachandran, local M.L.A, Padam Narayanan, and Mr. Raja participated in the event, organised by Mr. Santhana Moorthy , Coordinator, Cuddalore. Retired . IAS and IPS Officers from Puducheri, and Sakthivel Coordinators also participated in the event. 0 Rupee notes and fliers and magazine were distributed.
4. Bhanu Kumar Executive Director participated in an event on Indepth analysis of RTI held at Gokhale Hall at Karpagambal Avenue, Mylapore organised by Amutha surabhi Trust and Dawn Foundation. Mr Ramakrishnan I.A.S former Chief Information Commissioner,
Retired Justice HON. Natarajan, and Mr. Arasu participated in the event. This has been extensively covered in The Hindu dated 23rd Jan. 2011. The strength and the deficiencies of RTI were discussed in detail and there was a good interaction . with the public. About 50 people participated in the event.

Anti-Corruption Day Celebrations at Chapters

2010-12-14T07:53:00.000-05:00

NDTV-HINDU TV debate on "Fight Against Corruption'

2010-12-13T11:42:00.000-05:00

NDTV-HINDU - Chennai Speaks Out - "IS THE BATTLE AGAINST CORRUPTION A KNEE JERK REACTION OR A SUSTAINED CAMPAIGN?"

Now many believe that if Steven Spielberg were to do a film on the scams in India he would probably call it Swindlers list. So entrenched ladies and gentlemen has corruption become in our country in our society that everyday almost we hear of a new scam. Not long ago it was the common wealth games scam, followed by the adarsh housing societies scam followed by the 2G spectrum scam. Perhaps the biggest of them all in India ever and more recently the loan scam. And what's really shocking and disturbing is that even before the fire of one scam can die out, a fresh one erupts. Now I'm only reminded of a recent status update on facebook which said, in fact spoke of double standards in our country. When a poor man picks someone's pocket because he is hungry and he wants to buy a loaf of bread he is caught by the police beaten black and blue, sent to jail and sometimes even dies in police custody. But when ministers rob the country of 100's and 1000's of crore rupees, some of them are not even questioned. Toothless hounds - are they guarding our public morality. Have we as a society perfected the art of making a pretence, a big show of fighting corruption. Has civil society completely squandered its power of disapproval of corruption. Is our battle against corruption today a mere knee jerk reaction or a sustained campaign

See the debate at:

http://www.ndtv-hindu.com/features/chennai-speaks-out/2010/dec/12/166/is-the-battle-against-corruption-a-knee-jerk-reaction-or-a-sustained-campaign

Seg:1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9KIufoA3Ro

Seg:2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPYMUYRGbkk

Seg:3 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAxt1mf90U4

Seg:4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TO2zUxKf08o

5th Pillar Pondy chapter Human Chain-9 Dec 2010

2010-12-11T02:32:00.000-05:00

Refuse to pay a bribe in India? Get ready to be assaulted by government officials

2010-12-04T15:40:00.000-05:00

A Senior Citizen (former Air Force Officer) and his son were assaulted by government employees and their goons because they stood up against their corrupt practices.

CHOOSNA BANDH CAMPAIGN!

What can you do?
Just connect, read on, spread the word and think how else can you pitch in. Follow these simple steps:

1. Join http://www.facebook.com/ChoosnaBandh
2. Click on "Suggest to Friends" and share with others
3. Post to your walls
4. Share your story on the fan page
5. Forward this email to others

TO SEND A STRONG SIGNAL TO THE GOVERNMENT,
IT NEEDS ATLEAST 10,000 SUPPORTERS ON FACEBOOK
We urge you to join
this CALL TO ACTION
in the fight against corruption. ACT NOW

'Choosna Bandh', initiated by Bharat Jagran Trust and supported by Jaago Re, 5th Pillar, AwakInd, ex-Military Personnel, youth of India and many others like you, has initiated a virtual movement for starts.

Tell us if you can help in any way. If you have any ideas/questions, post an email to contact@bharatjagran.org

India, Corruption, and the Taint Effect

2010-12-01T22:01:00.000-05:00

http://www.financialtaskforce.org/2010/11/25/taint-effect/

Many people wouldn’t guess it, but corruption is a big challenge for India. The problem isn’t new, but it has recently come under intense international focus.

The fuss was sparked by this year’s Commonwealth Games, which are held between former British colonies, and were hosted in Dehli. Ironically, officials had hoped the games would showcase India’s increasing economic and political clout, but instead they were marred by deplorable living conditions for athletes and massive delays in building construction. It was soon revealed the blame for these circumstances could be traced to corruption. The chief of the Indian Olympic Association, Suresh Kalmadi, who was in charge of the Games, allegedly presided over numerous corrupt deals, and several under him also contributed to the systematic graft, which resulted in the stadium delays and the use of substandard construction materials.

Following the commotion with the infamous Games, India enjoyed no respite, but rather found itself roiled in wave after wave of new corruption allegations. One of the key moments came when Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Ashok Chavan, resigned in the wake of serious allegations of malpractices concerning an apartment tower in the heart of the city. Then, last week, an Indian comptroller and auditor general released a report that accused Andimuthu Raja, India’s former Telecommunication Minister, lost $34 billion in tax revenue by failing to follow proper procedure in the award of licenses to run mobile phone networks.

But now, in an added twist of irony, India’s Supreme Court is questioning the legitimacy of P.J. Thomas, the head of Central Vigilance Commission (CVC), the country’s anti-corruption agency. A three-member committee, which includes Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, appointed Thomas to the position in early September, despite loud protests from the opposition Baharaitya Janta Party (BJP), which claimed he could not be impartial. As it would turn out, the Supreme Court agrees.

As in response, Glboal Financial Integrity released a study last week titled The Drivers and Dynamics of Illicit Financial Flows from India: 1948-2008 that estimates the total amount of illicit financial flows (IFFs) from India, which includes a measure of money lost overseas to the proceeds of corruption. The study reckons India lost $16 billion per year between 2002 and 2006 in IFFs and that between 1948 and 2008, India lost a total of $213 billion.

Corruption poses a large array of obstacles to economic development; including, the deterioration of the rule of law; obstructions to business, which dissuades foreign and domestic investment; and, in the case of IFFs, corruption can bleed a developing country of much needed capital. Unaccompanied, these threats are serious enough to support the argument that corruption is a major inhibitor of economic development and a driver of income inequality. But these conditions are not alone.

Corruption also poses a threat to developing countries as it creates an aura of unreliability, which can make potential investors and other countries nervous. In other words it creates an impression of “taint.” For example, this week Canada entered talks with India over free trade, but the negotiations were endangered as they coincided with the international revelations of India’s plethora of corruption cases. Though India sought to reassure its North American counterpart, journalists and Canadian officials alike questioned whether India could be trusted with investor’s money.

It is for this reason that the commotion surrounding the Indian hosted Commonwealth Games and the deplorable athletes’ living conditions were not only symbolic disasters. Appearance is important, particularly when it comes to economics and investment. India can’t afford the act of corruption, but it also can’t afford the appearance of corruption. There are many developing countries that investors may choose from with low labor costs, an emerging educated class of people, and government officials serious about routing out graft. India can’t afford not to be one of them.

5th Pillar's Zero Currency at 14th International Anti Corruption Conference 2010

2010-11-11T23:20:00.001-05:00

Empowering Empowerment
11 November 2010

When you’re having a conference of more than 1000 participants, like the conference we’ve got here, you cannot expect real dialogues inside the sessions. Most of it will be one-way and although the discussions might be interesting, it won’t be engaging.

Unless you’re lucky and plung yourself into one of the People’s Empowerment Special Sessions, tucked inside the Ballroom A, nearby the registration booths.

The rules here are different with other sessions. There are four circles with different focuses. Each circle is populated by about 40 people. You can choose two of them, each lasting for 40 minutes. One or two panelists will talk first for about 5-10 minutes, and then it’s the participants’ turn to tell their own stories.

Today’s topic is Mobilising People. First focus is People Count: Citizen Empowerment, Grass-Roots Action, Corruption Disruption. There’s also Quit Playing Dumb: responsible citizens and accountable representatives. Third is Squashed between a rock and a hard place: 5 positive actions to save civic space. And last but not least, Civil Society Empowerment – Political Vuvuzelas or Development Partners?

The great thing about the session is that there’s no real panelists, and participants are given more time to share. But time is still limited to around five minutes per speaker, so it’s similar with elevator pitches where adrenaline rush makes you more excited.

Plus, the absence of microphone pushes people to talk louder, they sound to be more passionate, while people in the circles have to lean closer and concentrate well to hear the stories.

I chose the circle discussing about People Count. Hussein Khalid from Muslims for Human Rights, Kenya, told the importance of making people connected and empowered before they can be mobilized to fight corruption.

Don’t forget, ‘We have to make the corruption issue closer to the people. Don’t just tell them that corruption costs us 10 million dollars a year,’ he said. It’s a difficult concept to understand for people with lower income than two dollars a day.

Vijay Anand of 5th Pillar, India, shared an interesting story of campaigning anti-bribe movement. 5th Pillar is campaigning on printed ‘Zero Rupee’ bills. Bearing Mahatma Gandhi’s face, a sign of non-violence fight, he said, the pseudo-bills have two strong sentences: ‘Eliminate corruption at all levels’ and ‘I promise to neither accept nor give bribes.’

5th Pillar provokes the students’ thoughts and anger against corruption, and then convinces them that they can definitely change it. Anand’s organisation then asks the students to spread Zero Rupee to their friends, families, and give it to the officials who usually want to be bribed for public services.

Funny thing is, the officials who receives the bills usually suddenly do not ask for bribe — at least not to the ones who give it — and give proper public services in return. Some honest officials even sometimes put the Zero Rupee in their office, showing people that they don’t take bribes.

Danang Widoyoko from Indonesia Corruption Watch told how last year they mobilise the people to join the movement to support the KPK (Corruption Eradication Commission). Two vice chairmen of KPK was said to ask for bribes, an allegation engineered by the police and attorney general office. ICW contacted the law professors to voice their concerns against the criminalisation in press conferences and in television talk shows. Widoyoko and other anticorruption watchdogs organised huge demonstrations in 20 cities, bringing thousands of activists and students to the street in the same day.

They also used popular artists and music bands to aid the movement. ‘It’s to get more attention and reach more people,’ he said.

The most popular rock band in Indonesia, Slank, even made a song for the movement, making it a hit ringtone and ring back tone home. The President, fearing that the movement would cause him losing his chair, finally asked the police and attorney general office to stop the investigation.

The conversation kept going on and on with different success stories on mobilising people, making me left the room with a wide smile, despite all the challenges facing the anticorruption agenda: we’re definitely empowering the empowerment.

I’ve decided that I’d go back to another People’s Empowerment session tomorrow, discussing how to support victims, witnesses, and whistleblowers.

See you there!

5th Pillar Poptech presentation- blog article and picture.

2010-11-10T20:08:00.003-05:00

BRIBES BE GONE. THE ZERO RUPEE NOTE COMBATS CORRUPTION.

AUTHOR: Emily Spivack
POSTED: 10/23/10 19:10 UTC
INFO: Bio
TAGS: PopTech2010,psychology, finance, Activism,Culture, Education

Zero Rupee Note Combats Corruption

Corruption is rampant in India. It's a day-to-day affair. Regardless of wealth or social status, a person in India can't live without paying a bribe for a birth certificate, a passport, enrolling a student in public school, or any of the mundane but necessary activities others might take for granted. 99% of India's population is impacted by these bribes. In fact, based on an index from Transparency International, India ranks 84th in the world when it comes to corruption.

But Vijay Anand believes it doesn't have to be that way. Why do Indian citizens need to put up with this abuse of public trust for private gain? That's why he started 5th Pillar, an organization dedicated to providing everyday citizens with tools to help them eliminate corruption throughout society, and more specifically, through the Zero Rupee note. Disseminated throughout India, these bills are "non-violent weapons of non-cooperation" that give people who may have been afraid to raise their voice, a convenient and simple mechanism to refuse bribery without fear or shame. While the bill looks like typical currency on one side, the other side provides training on how to use India's Right of Information Act to demand government accountability.

Thus far, 1.5 million Zero Rupee notes have been distributed in the past few years. While success stories of combating bribery throughout the country abound, there's still a long way to go before this phenomenon creates a country-wide societal shift. Until then, Anand will continue to overhaul the cultural acceptance of bribery by focusing his efforts on educating students. His hope is that their parents, whose behaviors tend to be more ingrained, will listen to their children and flash the Zero Rupee note the next time someone tries to pull a fast one.

(Photo credit: Kris Krüg)

Please Sign Online Petition for Absentee Voting for NRI's

2010-10-27T21:28:00.000-04:00

Dear Friends,
Hope you are aware of NRI Voting rights draft bill, passed in Rajya Sabha on Aug 30th 2010, and is to be introduced in Lok Sabha 2010(Nov) of the Indian Parliament.

Good News is - This extends Voting Rights to NRIs.

Bad News is - You need to be physically present on election day in India to cast your vote.

Please think how practical this is for about 2.5 crore NRIs to excercise their franchise by being present in India at the same time. For 10 lakh NRIs, it takes 100 days with all flights booked to India . What about 2.5 crores? Impossible.

Please support extending "Absentee Voting" for NRIs by signing online petition (takes less than 15 sec, but adds infinite value to the cause and no donations required.)

Online Petition : http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/proxyvotingfornris/

Note: No need to donate. You can close the web page once you sign and submit the petetion.

Current Activity: Besides getting support from NRIs thru online petition, We are reaching all MPs and other concerned officials to make our voice heard. If you want to volunteer, please visit www.nrivotingrights.info to learn more.

"Vote is our Right, Let us not to be denied"

Thanking You

Raghava R Solipuram, PMP
- A Responsible Citizen
Ph: 781 367 9367

Meet & Interact With Whistleblower & Anti- Corruption Crusader

2010-10-15T00:18:00.013-04:00

Invites you with family & friends to meet and
Interact with
Whistleblower & Anti-Corruption Crusader

Mr. C. Umashankar, IAS
MD of TANSI, Chennai

Mr. C.Umashankar, I.A.S accompanied by his wife Ms.Suryakala Umashankar, will share his 20 years of Indian Administrative Service experience in various departments.

Talk on "E-governance, Democracy & Anti-Corruption"

In the US

Click here for the nearest location of the Event

RSVP: Email - ENDcorruption@5thpillar.org

Mr. Umashankar, a tireless crusader against corruption and abuse of power, is a 1990 batch IAS officer of Tamil Nadu cadre and an e-governance specialist. When he was Additional Collector (Development) and Project officer, District Rural Development Agency (DRDA), Madurai, there was misuse of funds allotted for construction of Cremation Sheds for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled tribes. He refused to obey the illegal order of the then District Collector to award the contract to a private contractor. A Public Interest litigation came to be filed in the Madras High Court which ordered a CBI enquiry. During 1996, the DMK was voted to power and appointed him as Joint Vigilance Commissioner to peruse the files pertaining to high level corruption. He submitted several reports and indicted several IAS officers for corruption and abuse of power.

In 1999, he was appointed as District Collector, Tiruvarur where he introduced e-governance in the district administration. This was the first of its kind in the whole of India. Tiruvarur was rated 20 years ahead of rest of India by India’s leading newspaper The Times of India. The Week, a weekly magazine chose him as the Best Bureaucrat from all over India who can make the life of Indians better in the new millennium. He was sidelined when the AIADMK came to power.When the DMK was voted back to power again in May, 2006, he was appointed as Managing Director of ELCOT, a state owned company where he introduced total transparency in the award of contracts by introducing e-tender and also by a new method of tender evaluation by the bidding contractors themselves. He also introduced the use of large scale free and open source software in Government offices.

He also probed the scam - the mysterious disappearance of ETL Infrastructure Limited worth more than Rs.700 crores and he was abruptly removed from the post of MD, ELCOT. When he was working as managing director of TIIC, he got caught in the family crossfire and was sent as managing director of Arasu Cable TV Corporation, a Government owned company.

When he questioned the role of some powerful people, he was again shunted out of Arasu Cable TV Corporation and posted as Commissioner of Small Savings, an ex cadre post. The Arasu Cable TV Corporation Limited is now almost dead. The vindictive state government issued a charge memo to prevent his empanelment as Joint Secretary, Government of India.

He was denied even a car loan and allotment of housing plot by the Government of Tamil Nadu. He moved the Central Administrative Tribunal, Chennai and obtained stay against the Charge Memo. The state government then ordered a vigilance inquiry on his alleged assets disproportionate to known sources of income. The government ultimately suspended him on charges of producing fake community certificate to get into civil service. There were protests all over the country against victimizing a honest officer and the government was forced to revoke the suspension order and reinstated him as the Managing Director of TANSI. His crusade continues..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztx8_YcKvbs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeEdMpHsWAA&feature=related

A Call to register for Legislative Council elections- Make use of the Opportunity

2010-10-09T21:08:00.000-04:00

It has been a long wait, expecting that good Governance will happen, Change has to be created, let us all be a part of one of world's largest democracy, with elections fast approaching in Tamil Nadu join hands and vote for a change. Register your names in voter list by downloading the forms and turning it in by Nov 6th. http://www.elections.tn.nic.in/tnmlcforms.htm

November 6, 2010 will be the last date for the receipt of applications by the designated officers for inclusion of the names of electors eligible for voting in the forthcoming election to the various constituencies of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Council, according to C.R. Brahmam, Consultant to the Chief Electoral Officer, Tamil Nadu, on the election of members to the Legislative Council, which has been revived by the Tamil Nadu government.

All states have a Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly), popularly elected for terms of up to five years, while a small (and declining) number of states also have an upper house, the Vidhan Parishad (Legislative Council), roughly comparable to the Rajya Sabha, with memberships that may not be more than one-third the size of the assemblies. In these councils, one-sixth of the members are nominated...

Allocation of seats in Tamil Nadu:

Out of the 78 seats in the council, seven seats are allocated to the Graduates' Constituencies (one seat for each of the seven constituencies), seven seats for the Teachers' Constituencies (one seat for each of the seven constituencies), and 26 seats for the Local Authorities' Constituencies.

26 seats would be filled by the MLAs, while candidates nominated by the Governor would fill 12 seats. The Graduates, Teachers and Local Authorities Constituencies (LACs) would cover all the districts in the State.

http://www.hindu.com/2010/09/28/stories/2010092851640300.htm

We are more easily reachable now ...

2010-10-09T14:48:00.001-04:00

Communication in time is the essence of everything in this world. The communication must reach the desired parties in time, accurately and without any delays. Towards achieving the superfast communication speeds, we are easily reachable now on your favorite communities. Stay tuned us with updates from us on both FaceBook and Twitter. You can choose the links in 'Follow us on...' section for more updates...

Drop us a comment if you would need more info or assistance reaching us on our channels.

Sat 9 Oct, 10.00 am- Electoral Integrity Open House in Chennai

2010-10-08T12:00:00.000-04:00

Hello friends,

We need all of you(in Chennai and vicinity) to attend this open house tomorrow, Sat the 9th Oct 2010, as we are at a very critical juncture in terms of saving democracy and restoring people's faith in the election system. The top officials of this department will be in attendance tomorrow and we need to show to them that there are a good number of socially responsible citizens who are wanting these undemocratic acts to stop...Please forward to all your contacts and make tomorrow's event a full house....

STOP CASH for VOTE!(huh!) Tomorrow 9 Oct 10, 10.30 am at Chennai-5th Pillar and allies hold Open House on "FREE & FAIR ELECTIONS- Combating Money & Muscle Power in 2011 TN Elections"- P.S.Higher Sec.School, R.K.Mutt Road, Mylapore- Chief Election Commissioner, Dr. S.Y. Quraishi presides. Other panelists include former ...CEC, Mr.Gopalaswami, former TN Election Commissioner Mr.Naresh Gupta. All are welcome- Let us RESTORE PEOPLE'S FAITH IN DEMOCRACY AND ELECTIONS- More details on www.5thpillar.org (Help spread the word by re-posting on your facebook wall, orkut or blog..Thanks. :)

In solidarity,
Vijay Anand.

President- 5th Pillar
41, Circular Road, United India Colony,
Kodambakkam, Chennai- 600 024.

Corruption Free India!- www.5thpillar.org

ECI - Civil Society Interaction 09 October 2010

2010-10-07T23:55:00.001-04:00

     Election Commission of India – Civil Society Interaction

                                               Open House on
“Free and Fair Elections – Combating Money/Muscle Power”

        Chennai:  Saturday, 09 October, 2010 - 10.30 AM to 1.30 PM
  [Dakshinamurthy Auditorium; PS Higher Sec. School, R.K.Mutt Road, Mylapore]

[Jointly organised by: Rajaji Centre for Public Affairs; Transparency International India (TN Chapter);  Catalyst Trust; 5th Pillar; Nandini Voice; Institute of Public Auditors and Forum for Electoral Integrity]

Chair: Mr. N.Gopalaswami, former Chief Election Commissioner of India

Chief Guest: Dr. S.Y. Quraishi, Chief Election Commissioner of India

Special Guest: Mr. Praveen Kumar, Chief Electoral Officer, Tamil Nadu

Programme:
Invocation – Thamizh thai vazhthu
Welcome & Introducing the Theme: M.G.Devasahayam, Convener, Forum for
                                                                                                Electoral Integrity
Address: Vijay Anand, President, 5th Pillar
                 R. Chandran, Student Representative
                 N.L. Rajah, Trustee, Catalyst Trust
                 Era Sezhian, former Member of Parliament

Interactive Session with the Participants

Address: Dr. S.Y. Quraishi

Address and Concluding remarks: Mr. N.Gopalaswami

Vote of Thanks: N.S. Venkataraman, Nandini Voice

National Anthem
                                        YOU ARE CORDIALLY INVITED

RSVP: A. Subramani: 9940514317                        K.Bhanu Kumar: 9444901910
                                  Email: endcorruption@5thpillar.org

Recommendations - "Electoral Integrity- Need of the hour" Sat 9th Oct 2010"

2010-10-04T15:33:00.000-04:00

Open House to be held on Oct 09, 2010, flier for the event on www.5thpillar.org

Memorandum to Chief Election Commissioner that is to be submitted will have the following Recommendations:

1.       Combating Money-Power and Bribing of Voters
a.       Mechanism for effective monitoring & accounting of election expenditure by candidates and time-bound remedial action
It is necessary to put in place a mechanism for closer monitoring, better accounting and book keeping of election expenses incurred by candidates/ parties. This has to be followed to its logical conclusion by disqualification of candidates who either do not maintain accounts
properly or incur expenses in excess of the ceiling limit.

b.      Making ‘Observers of the Election Commission’ as an effective instrument to combat money-power
The Observers act as the ‘eyes and ears’ of the Commission during the period of the election and provide direct inputs to the Commission from the field. Generally, the Election Commission of India appoints senior officers of the Government from the I.A.S, I.F.S and other Central Services like IRS, IC & CES as Observers.

c.       Citizen’s Observers to supplement ‘Official Observers’
In addition to the ‘Official Observers’ appointed by the Commission, there is a need to have ‘Citizens’ Observers’ to perform the same role except they will not have statutory powers but can still function as the eyes and ears of the Election Commission and provide direct inputs from the field to the Election Commission/ CEO/ Observers/ DEO/ RO on the violations of the Model Code and distribution of cash and gifts (including tokens) or/ and the possible likely violations/ distribution and also on whether action was taken or not taken to check it.

d.      [Countermanding/] postponement of elections in constituencies wherein Model Code of Conduct has been blatantly violated.
In constituencies where massive money power was deployed and where there is large- scale distribution of cash or other gifts, because of which ‘result of the election is likely to be affected’, the Election Commission should [countermand or] postpone the elections. This will send a strong message to the ‘cash-and-carry candidates’ who are destroying the credibility of the electoral process.

e.      Ensuring impartial ‘command & control’ over the State police force.
Combating of money/muscle-power and strict enforcement of Model Code of Conduct during elections depends in large measure on the way the State electoral machinery including the police force performs its duty. The members of Civil Services should be free from political control, but in actual practice, a number of senior officers sub-serve the political interests of their political masters, either with a view to seek a posting in plum posts or to retain themselves in these posts. They lack the intellectual integrity expected of civil servants in important positions. The Commission should obtain intelligence on the functioning of the election related officers.

f.        Effective intelligence gathering and surveillance to detect large-scale distribution of cash or other gifts

2.       Information, Education and Communication [IEC]
a.       One of the most effective ways of checking the adverse effects of bribing of voters and changing their mindset is by taking up an intensive IEC campaign. Making use of the Media (Internet, television, radio etc to its full capacity) and involve the Non Profit organizations, corporate etc to assist in such efforts.

5th Pillar participates at the Joy Of Giving Week at Valluvar Kottam, Chennai on 26&27 Sep 2010

2010-10-03T03:20:00.002-04:00

5th Pillar was one of the 70 stalls instituted at the Valluvar Kottam complex on the 2 day event. The event was inaugurated by Mr. Gnani, famous writer, Padmashri Dr. Bakthavatchalam and Mr.Murali, owner of Krishna Sweets. There were many attendees for this event and many schools kids and college kids came in groups to take part in the event.

We had displayed our 30 x 10 feet banner and asked all the attendees to sign on the banner to show their solidarity against corruption. Volunteers of 5th Pillar manned the stalls in shifts and played an active role in promoting the anti-corruption message to all the participants of the event. Continuous display of videos of Mr. Vijay Anand's speech at various colleges, promotional anti-corruption videos, and pictures of our past events in varied institutions were on continuous display in TV monitor.

President of 5th Pillar, Mr. Vijay Anand addressed the visitors of the mela who were of various age groups and after his speech on Freedom from Corruption, he asked all the participants to raise their hands with the Zero Rupee Note and asked them totake a pledge, to neither accept nor give bribe.
We had a box in our stall to collect the grievances of the public. We received many grievances and some are listen below:

Denial of job because of not being able to pay a bribe.
Delay in getting jobs on compassionate grounds.
Indifferent attitudes of Banks in granting educational loan.
One person wanted an RTI training in her area.
Drinking water and sand quarrying problem.

Many of the visitors became members of our organization and also subscribed to our monthly Tamil magazine MAATTRAM. The event was a fun get together for many NGO's whose common ideology was service to the public.

5th Pillar conducts door to door campaign at Mudivaithanentha Village in Tuiticorin District on 26.09.2010

2010-10-03T03:18:00.000-04:00

Tuiticorin chapter coordinator, Mr. Adi Narayanan and 2 other 5th Pillar members Prabhakaran and Samuel conducted a door to door campaign in the Mudivaithanentha village, by distributing 5th Pillar notices, RTI fliers and Zero Rupee Notes to nearly 300 households in the village. They took time to explain the role of 5th Pillar in helping the public to attain denied governmental services. The village was mostly habited by the ex servicemen and policemen. In one of the household our representatives met a public information officer who mentioned that our crusade was noble and our mission to empower the citizens on anti-corruption is very crucial in the current society. The villagers were very happy to learn about our organization and they have requested us for an RTI training session. The main idea of this campaign was to sensitize the public on anti-corruption and to emphasize and boost the morale of people by educating them that they can obtain services without having to pay an extra fee as bribe.

5th Pillar conducts awareness campaign to the Madurai Dies & Chemicals Merchant Association

2010-10-03T03:16:00.000-04:00

In the annual General Body meeting of the Madurai Dies & Chemicals held on 26.09.2010 at AKR Kalyana Mahal in Madurai, they invited 5th Pillar to address their staff about the RTI Act. Mr. Balaji, 5th Pillar, Madurai chapter coordinator addressed the audience about RTI Act and its effective implementation to retrieve denied services and revert back corruptive losses. He explained in depth about the ways to frame the right kind of question to make the petition effective such that when they provide the answer they would be exposing corruption. This was an interactive session were many from the audience had interesting queries about different situations they faced and are facing currently. Many from the audience subscribed to our Monthly Tamil magazine MAATTRAM to be best informed about latest news in corruption.

Awareness campaign at Vallipuram, Kancheepuram District on 26.09.2010

2010-10-03T03:11:00.001-04:00

Twenty IITians of Madras conducted a camp at Vallipuram, a remote village, 20 kms from Chengalpet in Kancheepuram District. The students of IIT conducted this camp to educate the public in this area about overall adaptation to trending society. They invited 5th Pillar on 6^th September to conduct an awareness campaign on anti-corruption. Mr. Subramani, Director of Operations, 5^th Pillar participated in this program and addressed the villagers on various aspects. He spoke to them about the services in health, sanitation, education and other infrastructures that are in place to uplift their life. In most cases the rural people are unaware of the services that they are entitled to and so they suffer. Mr. Subramani spoke to them about the various schemes and projects that are formulated for the rural society and also explained in detail about the procedures to follow to avail the opportunity. He also encouraged them to approach our organization for guidance and help in availing their rights and services from the government. His detailed account of all the services provided by us to the public was very much appreciated by the villagers. He gave examples of successes achieved by filing RTI petitions and by handing the Zero Rupee Note to the corrupt official demanding bribe. Zero Rupee Note and 5th Pillar flier with relevant information was distributed to all the participants. He emphasized on the duties of each citizen to dissociate from the corruptive practices in order to develop a strong powerful stress free society.

5th Pillar fliers and Zero Rupee Note were distributed in Tuticorin Collectorate on Grievance day, 20.09.2010

2010-10-03T03:09:00.005-04:00

Mr. Adi Narayanan, Chapter coordinator of 5th Pillar in Tuticorin distributed 5th Pillar fliers, Zero Rupee Note and RTI information pamphlet to all the visitors of the Tuticorin Collectorate and encouraged them to accost us when faced with corruption. Public approach the collectorate to file their petitions to address their grievances. This is a good venue to distribute informational materials to the public to empower and educate them about the services available out there that they can avail to alleviate their situation.

5th Pillar conducts awareness campaign in Fishermen camp at Idinthakarai, Tirunelveli District

2010-10-03T03:07:00.002-04:00

Mr. Thiruselvam of Manitha Urimai Makkal Padukappu Iyakkam, invited 5th Pillar to conduct an awareness campaign about anti-corruption in the fishermen sector of Idinthakarai village. This beautiful coastal village which is serene and tranquil is infested with corruption and the 150 participants had volumes of issues and grievances which they shared in hope of emancipation. Mr. Adi Narayanan, 5th Pillar chapter coordinator of Tuiticorin participated in this event and addressed the participants about the goals and mission of our organization and highlighted the services provided to the public. The participants who were mainly fishermen had realms of afflictions to narrate to our coordinator, who documented the issues to be published in our monthly Tamil magazine MAATTRAM.

Manitha Urimai Makkal Padukappu Iyakkam were very eager to join hands with our organization to fight corruption as we have the same ideologies.

5th Pillar Pondicherry member participates in an RTI program on EYE TV PONDY

2010-10-03T03:05:00.002-04:00

5th Pillar Pondicherry member Mr. Rajendran took part in an interactive program on EYE TV PONDY on 18 September 2010. This is a live program were he was interviewed about the salient features of the RTI Act itself and the practicality in adopting this Act to file RTI petitions to solve their issues, like delayed Ration card, passport, electricity connection and so on. Being an Advocate by profession, he was able to answer the queries of all the callers who wanted answers for their individual troubling situations. He answered all the callers and gave guidance as to how to approach each of their cases. The program was very interesting as each callers had varied situations and the viewers had a spectrum of situations and solutions.

5th Pillar takes part in Chakravyuha 10 organized by SRM University

2010-10-03T00:47:00.003-04:00

Chakravyuha 10 is yet another techno fest organized by the Mechanical Engineering Department of SRM University, Chennai. In the 3 day event that extended from 26 September to 28^th September, 5th Pillar was invited for a presentation on 28^th September. Mr. Vijay Anand, President of 5th Pillar addressed the attendees on the topic, “Freedom from Corruption” and explained about the endeavors undertaken by our organization to tackle corruption and help the public. Detailed explanation of the successes of adopting RTI Act to receive delayed services was very interesting to the student audience as they are beginning their journey into the real world of maze of corruption. The Zero Rupee Note which is the trademark tool of our organization that depicts our reluctance to take part in the act of bribery, was distributed to all the students and an oath proclaiming to neither accept nor give bribe was taken. 5th Pillar information pamphlet was also distributed to emphasize the mission and activities of our organization. As many as 20 students approached our team to register their name as volunteers in our organization to abet us in our mission to eradicate corruption. Students active participation will drive the mission farther and stronger.

Updates from the RTI Awareness Camp @Dharmapuri on 18th September 2010

2010-09-23T18:14:00.000-04:00

5th Pillar organized a comprehensive RTI Awareness camp at Dharmapuri on 18th September 2010. The event was organized at Puvidham Education Center in Nagarkudal Village, Dharmapuri -- 636803. The speakers of the event were:

Mr.Rajamanickam (Coordinator, Salem)

Mr. Gunasekaran (Lawyer, Dharmapuri Chapter Member)

N. Vinoth (Coordinator, Dharmapuri)

A few other volunteers also added their experiences with the village administration.

The RTI brought to limelight tonnage of bribe demands by the village administration besides the stiff silence that was prevailing over the petitions submitted to the collectorate over the said issues. More than 150 people from the surrounding villages of Nagarkoodal, Kalanikatoor, Balajangamanahalli and a few more participated in the camp. Owing to the intensity of the issue we had a grievance camp scheduled the nest day in the same campus. About 8 school teachers and 10 volunteers helped us in organizing the camp. The various petitions that were received were in the following categories:

1. Patta problems

2. Ration card, civil supplies issues ( Name inclusions / Deletions / New and Missed cards)

3. Electoral Identification problems

4. Old Age Pension issues
5. Widow Certificate Disbursal Delays 6. Birth/ Death certificate problems

The current action item is to re-request for a fresh RTI with the collectorate based on the above petitions through registered post with the concerned departments.

Awareness Campaign for the Retired Government Employees of Sankagiri Taluk

2010-09-18T04:40:00.002-04:00

Salem 5^th Pillar Chapter coordinator, Mr. Rajamanickam was invited by the Retired Government Employees Association of Sankagiri Taluk on 12^th September for their annual day celebration. Mr. Rajamanickam addressed the participants for 30 minutes about 5^th Pillar and our field activities. Zero Rupee Note was distributed to all the participants and they were encouraged to approach our offices for any help when faced with corruption. Retired officials encounter corruption when they apply for their pension and other benefits. We believe that empowering everyone with the necessary attributes will encourage them to confront the situation.

Awareness campaign for young film directors in Chennai

2010-09-18T04:39:00.002-04:00

5th Pillar was invited by the Tamizh Studio, (group of young film directors) for an awareness campaign on corruption. Mr. Subramani from 5th Pillar addressed the young directors about corruption and the activities of 5th Pillar in combating corruption. The film directors who are full of ideas had many interesting questions about this social curse. They also shared their own experiences and had suggestions on how to handle a situation. There were interesting queries like, if ever anyone from our organization had encountered a threat for non compliance. RTI Act was explained as an asset to a common man in ascertaining his rights. The main goal of this event was to sensitize the youth about the current impending national problem, and once the program started, it was very clear that they had a strong belief in anti-corruption movement and were willing to take part in our mission. Media is a vital portal for disseminating the message and as directors they would be able to portray the negativities of corruption.

RTI training session at Sourashtra Chamber of Commerce, Madurai

2010-09-18T04:38:00.000-04:00

5^th Pillar conducted RTI training for the members of the Sourashtra Chamber of Commerce, Madurai on 11th September. Madurai district coordinator of 5^th Pillar, Mr. Balaji, conducted the RTI training for the members, and went in detail on every step of the RTI filing process. RTI pamphlet was distributed to the participants and sample RTI petitions for different scenarios were compiled. The members of this organization were eager to start an RTI clinic.

RTI training Session for the All India RPF Association, Southern Railway, Chennai Division

2010-09-18T04:36:00.000-04:00

RTI training program was conducted for the All India RPF Association, Chennai Division, Southern Railway on 2nd September at YMCA Hall at Yellagiri Hills near Jolarpettai. 120 members of AIRPFA from various cities took part in the training session conducted by our organization. Mr. Binoy Antony, President of AIRPFA welcomed everyone and initiated the event. Mr. Subramani, Director of Operations, 5th Pillar conducted the training and answered all the queries relating to corruption. RTI Act was explained in detail, and sample RTI petitions were devised to help understand the procedure in filing a petition. A kit containing the Zero Rupee Note, copy of Maattram magazine and RTI pamphlet was distributed to all the participants. RTI training was very useful for them and hence they requested us to conduct such training sessions in other regions of their division.

5th Pillar participates in the Forum for Electoral Integrity Discussion

2010-09-17T23:54:00.000-04:00

Forum for Electoral Integrity met for a preliminary discussion on 29^th August at Chennai. The consultation received good response and 16 invitees from various civil societies participated which included our organization 5^th Pillar. Mr. Vijay Anand participated in this discussion and a follow up was scheduled for the 12^th September 2010. Earlier some of the invitees, including N.Gopalaswami, former Chief Election Commissioner had responded with valuable suggestions. These were compiled and circulated and also distributed at the meeting.

1. Deliberations

The meeting was chaired by Mr. G.Narayanaswamy. After his introductory remarks highlighting the criticality of the initiative in ensuring the survival of India’s Democracy, all the participants expressed their views in a clear and candid manner. Following important suggestions emerged out of the deliberations.

(i) At the macro-level evolve a Democratic Agenda to rally public in general and youth in particular towards a Movement for cleansing the electoral process.

(ii) Emphasise on Election Commissioners being appointed in a transparent manner by an ‘independent body’.

(iii) Section 49 (O) – Right to Reject – should be part of the balloting process

(iv) Election expenses should be concurrently audited

(v) EC should evolve stringent ‘code of conduct’ for eliminating the ‘paid news’ syndrome.

(vi) Relentless public pressure on bureaucrats and police not to allow ‘money-power’ to sway the elections.

(vii) Need to address the issue of political and bureaucratic corruption in order to effectively contain money-power in elections.

(viii) Launch a public movement for ‘Electoral Integrity’ in line with the JP Movement of the Seventies.

(ix) Strengthen the hands of the bureaucrats to ensure free and fair elections.

(x) Youth, particularly students in Colleges should be reached through extensive use of electronic instruments like Internet and Mobile phones

(xi) Networking of all concerned NGOs, citizen groups and Resident Associations.

(xii) Direct appeal to Editors/Owners of media houses to contain ‘paid-news’ menace.

(xiii) Distribution of freebies and liquor should be banned.

(xiv) Government should steps down sixty days before the poll day, and the polling should be held under President's rule.

(xv) Interaction with higher judiciary for sensitization and stressing the need for speedy disposal of election-related cases

(xvi) Constituting High Court level Special Tribunals to expeditiously dispose of election petitions and other election related cases

(xvii) Professional and eminent educational Institutions should be roped into this task

(xviii) Special strategy to reach out to the poor and low-income voters who are the real targets of ‘cash-for-votes’.

(xix) EC and the CEOs are expressing helplessness I dealing with cash-for-votes. Is it because the administrative machinery is within the grip of the ruling party? This grave anomaly needs to be seriously addressed.

(xx) CEO or EC should suspend the election process in an entire constituency, when widespread malpractices and corruption become known and well publicized.

2. Response by Experts

To the points raised above, two experts – Naresh Gupta and DK Oza – former CEOs of Tamil Nadu responded with their views.

Naresh Gupta

(i) Electoral Reforms is a long process. We must attempt only what is doable and put forth workable solutions

(ii) Close monitoring, accounting and booking of election expenses and taking swift action to disqualify candidates violating model code of conduct could be effective.

(iii) Information is that in the new bribe-giving model that is in vogue, hired people are distributing money in an organised and structured manner. Difficult to establish a nexus with contesting candidates.

(iv) Information, Education, Communication (IEC) campaign should be taken up in a big way through media and public mobilization. This could be very useful.

(v) Through the Election Observers, EC can intensely monitor sensitive constituencies where cash-for-vote menace is the maximum. Based on the credible evidence gathered if EC can postpone/cancel elections in some of the worst constituencies it can have a very salutary and psychological effect.

DK Oza

(vi) EC has limitless mandate to ensure free and fair election. Constitution provides for it and Supreme Court has confirmed it.

(vii) Election Commissions observers is a good scheme but it needs to be strengthened and fast-tracked to achieve the desired results.

(viii) Institutional involvement is important for ensuring electoral integrity. Panchayati Raj institutions could pay a vital role in checking electoral malpractices (distribution of money, alcohol, intimidation, impersonation, blatantly religious or communal propaganda, etc.)

(ix) Involving the corporate sector and its apex bodies like CII, FICCI, etc. could be seriously considered.

(x) More than anything else we should concentrate on the EC for remedial action instead of frittering efforts to send Memos and delegations to PM etc. As a Group we should call on the Election Commission ASAP.

3. Summing Up

M.G.Devasahayam, Convener of the Forum expressed his views and also summed up the deliberations:

(i) All the points raised are valid and valuable. But most of them are vast and time consuming in nature. As rightly pointed out by Naresh Gupta and DK Oza, in the short term we should attempt what is doable and concentrate on the EC.

(ii) Right thinking Electorate (which is the majority) is looking for exemplary and effective action and expects EC to come down heavily in the blatant exhibition and deployment of money-power in elections. Why can’t EC countermand elections in constituencies where massive money power is being deployed — as described in Section 123 of the Representation of the People Act — that can send shivers down the spine of the ‘cash-and-carry candidates’ who are destroying the credibility of the electoral process? Is it the failure of EC or the much celebrated band of ‘Observers’ who does not seem to be doing anything worthwhile except enjoying some ‘outing’ at taxpayer’s expense!

(iii) As of now provision for countermanding of election in a constituency is available under Section 59 A 2(b) of the Act for ‘booth capturing’ which covers the physical act of taking possession of polling stations, ballot-boxes/EVM or ballot-papers because of which ‘result of the election is likely to be affected’. Since proven pre-poll vote purchase would also have the same ‘result’ there is nothing wrong in invoking this strong psychological weapon to make the elections free and fair, which is the constitutional mandate of the Election Commission.

(iv) Instead of we going to New Delhi on a delegation to meet EC, there is a possibility of EC coming to Chennai to discuss with the delegation and also participate in a ‘Open House’ to find ways and means to severely contain the malaise of money-power in elections. He is in touch with the EC and would work out the details.

5th Pillar set up an information desk at the Vellore Book Fair

2010-09-17T23:52:00.007-04:00

‘Noolaru 2010,' the nine-day Vellore Book Fair was inaugurated by G. Viswanathan, Chancellor of VIT University, at the fort maidan in Vellore on Saturday, 28th August 2010. A total of 95 publishers and booksellers have put up stalls in the exhibition, which was open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. till September 5. Tamizh Studio an organization that produces small movies, set up a stall in the Vellore book fair and screened some of their productions. 5th Pillar set up the desk alongside Tamizh Studio, and distributed the Zero Rupee Note and RTI pamphlet explaining about the RTI Act and its adoption to access delayed services. Collector and local MLA visited the 5th Pillar stall and collected the Zero Rupee Note and Maattram magazine.

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5th Pillar instituted information desk at Hotel Grand Palace, Yercaud

2010-09-17T23:44:00.000-04:00

Managing Director of Hotel Grand Palace in Yercaud Mr.M.S.Vijayakumar invited 5^th Pillar to set up a information desk at their hotel on 4^th September from 4-9 PM. Dharmapuri coordinator of 5^th Pillar, Vinoth and other volunteers visited the hotel and set up the desk in their reception and distributed the Zero Rupee Note, RTI pamphlet and displayed Maattram magazine. Weekends are very active in the hill station and usually there are many guests visiting the hill resort. Guests visiting the hill resort approached our manned desk and learned about the activities and services provided by our organization. More than 100 guests visited the desk and had many queries which were answered by the coordinators of 5^th Pillar, and some became our members and subscribed for our monthly magazine Maattram. MD of the hotel has asked our organization to set up a information desk every weekend at their hotel which will disseminate our goal faster to wider audiences as there are visitors from various cities and states.

5th Pillar instituted a information desk at a Wedding in Salem

2010-09-17T23:35:00.004-04:00

5th Pillar set up an information desk at the marriage of Mr. Mahendran and Ms. Juliet at Salem on 29th and 30th Aug 2010. Volunteers of 5th Pillar manned the desk and distributed the Zero Rupee Notes to all the guests attending the wedding. Tamil monthly magazine of 5th Pillar, Maattram was displayed to create awareness among the guests about the activities of 5th Pillar. Many guests approached the desk for a one on one discussion of their current encounter with corruption and sought advice on how to tackle the situation. Some of them became members and also subscribed to our monthly magazine Maattram. 5th Pillar's President, Mr. Vijay Anand spoke about, “Freedom from Corruption”, and explained in detail about our ongoing projects and campaigns. Wedding is a place where the people gathered can express their concern in an informal manner and they open up easily to the existing problems. Some of them had some pending issues and hence got our office contact info to file RTI petitions.

5th Pillar conducts RTI training for the Retired Government Employees of Cuddalore District

2010-09-17T17:41:00.002-04:00

Retired Government Employees meet once a month at the Retd Govt Employees Association Office in Cuddalore once a month. They had invited 5^th Pillar earlier to present about our organization. They wanted to get a training on filing RTI petitions and so had requested our organization to conduct RTI training for their members during their monthly meeting on 5^th September. Virudhachalam chapter coordinator of 5^th Pillar, Mr. Santhanamoorthy conducted the RTI training session for all the 100 members present on that day. Training them was very interesting as they had additional information to share about their line of work. This empowers each of them to better utilize this skill to help fellow citizens.

5th Pillar conducts RTI training for the agriculturists of Erode District

2010-09-17T17:40:00.000-04:00

Erode chapter of 5th Pillar conducted an RTI training for the agriculturists of the Erode district at their Agriculturist association on 1st September. Mr. Ramar, retired forest department staff who is a member of the Coimbatore chapter of 5th Pillar, conducted the RTI training for all the participants. He explained in detail about the standard procedure and how to phrase the questions to get the expected reply. Example questions for obtaining certain delayed services were very useful guidance. Agriculturists encounter corruption in many areas and the use of RTI to address their issues was very useful for them. Some of them from the participants recounted the problems they experience and requested guidance in tackling the problems.

5th Pillar was aired on All India Radio

2010-09-17T17:38:00.000-04:00

Executive Director of 5^th Pillar, Mr. Bhanu Kumar was interviewed by All India Radio on 3^rd September, about RTI. The program was aired on 10^th September, and will have a repeat once every 3 months. Right to Information Act is a blessing in disguise for the common civilian who is otherwise hitting the brick wall in regard to obtaining services, from any department. We are hoping that we can reach people of different sections by this program, and they will learn of this Act and try to implement it to their benefit or at the least approach us for help in filing these petitions. Awareness reduces incidents, and that is what we are trying to achieve.

5th Pillar conducts awareness campaign at FEDCOP, Madurai

2010-09-17T17:36:00.000-04:00

Federation of consumer organizations of Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry (FEDCOP) organized a meeting on 29th August and invited 5th Pillar to present our objectives and our mission. Mr. Balaji, coordinator of 5th Pillar, Madurai Chapter addressed the event that was attended by 80 members. He explained about the operations of 5th Pillar and our field activities. 5th Pillar's goal and mission and our mode of implementation was highlighted. Right to Information Act and its adoption to facilitate access to denied services was explained in detail. Participants were encouraged to approach our organization to get free counseling in filing an RTI petition. Zero Rupee Note which is an anti-corruption tool also includes the contact details of our organization was distributed along with the pamphlets of our organization which has all the relevant details about the RTI Act. Audience who comprised of participants from many districts of the state were very eager to start a local chapter of 5th Pillar in their hometown to facilitate their neighbors. Empowerment is crucial to eradicate corruption and hence our mission will continue.

5th Pillar takes part in the Aarush 10, techno- management fest organized by SRM University, Chennai

2010-09-17T17:23:00.005-04:00

Aarush 10 is a techno- management fest organized by SRM University. This year their pledge to bring out solutions to the common problems overlooked by current technologies, which hinder the development of mankind, included our organization whose goal is to eradicate corruption to alleviate the social status of mankind. 5th Pillar took part in the 4 day program from Sep 1st to Sep 4th. They organized a rally on August 31st, where all the participating organizations carried their banners and went on a procession to create awareness. Student volunteers of 5th Pillar carried a banner of the Zero Rupee Note and marched along and also took a oath to neither accept nor give bribe. Zero Rupee Note was distributed to all the participants of the event who were students also from other educational institutions and other organizations. The participants after the rally to an oath to neither accept nor give bribe, by holding the Zero Rupee Note.

5th Pillar was assigned a stall in the SRM Campus where we displayed the Zero Rupee Note Banner and distributed it to all the participants of the event on all 4 days. We had on display our monthly Tamil magazine , MAATTRAM and RTI pamphlets. Students from other institutions and other corporate organizations who participated at this event welcomed the idea of anti-corruption which is the root cause for the decay of our socio-economic status.

On 2nd September, Mr. Vijay Anand, President of 5th Pillar spoke on the topic of “Freedom from Corruption”. His talk on the current scenario and the effect of corruption in our society was highlighted with examples to express the need to address this social evil that is debilitating the growth of our nation. His speech was very well received by all the participants and the students of SRM have planned to initiate a student chapter of 5th Pillar called SAC (Students against Corruption) in their institution.

Click on the youtube link to view the rally of 5th Pillar at the Aaruush 10 fest at SRM University.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGDdbtP64lk&feature=email

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Mr. Vijay Anand speaks at the TEDx conference at JNTU University in Andhra Pradesh

2010-09-06T03:03:00.000-04:00

Mr. Vijay Anand was invited as a guest speaker at the TEDx conference held at Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU), Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh. TEDx gathering is where people share their innovative ideas that they are implementing to alleviate the norms of our society. There were more than 200 participants from around the world and Mr. Anand was asked to speak about the activities undertaken by 5th Pillar to tackle corruption in India. Zero Rupee Note used to confront the corrupt was highlighted as the novice tool adopted by 5th Pillar to combat corruption. Corruption has become a way of life to many and some have even started to justify their action of bribing by saying that they are smart to get things done on time. Mr. Anand's speech covered the overall aspects of corruption in our daily life and how it affects and propagates as a ripple effect, and destroys the society. He then explained about instances when the public have used the Zero Rupee Note in real situations and the ensuing success. RTI(Right to Information) Act is a boon in disguise for common man who would otherwise be hitting on a stone wall for delayed services. With this new Act people can get their delayed services delivered to their doorstep, like say for example when a person applied for a new ration card after his marriage, he waited for nearly 10 months and when he approached 5th Pillar he was advised to file an RTI petition, and was helped by 5th Pillar to file a petition. He received his ration card in 18 days. Zero Rupee Note and RTI petitions are used effectively to confront corruption and hence Mr. Anand insisted that every citizen should understand the ill effects of the act of bribery and take a stand to neither accept nor give bribe, which will only then put our country on the map towards road to success.

5th Pillar campaigns against corruption at SSN Engineering College, Chennai

2010-09-04T01:40:00.006-04:00

In the “Freedom from Corruption” campaign organized by 5th Pillar, at SSN Engineering college, Chennai on 24th August, 2010, Mr. Vijay Anand, President of 5th Pillar spoke about the importance of containing Corruption to establish ourselves as a super power. He emphasized that we have all the resources to elevate ourselves from the strata of third world country to a powerful nation , if we can stop the efflux of money to the offshore accounts. He stressed the importance of eradicating corruption, which if not contained would spread as cancer and will destroy the social fabric of our nation. Ways of combating corruption by filing RTI petition and handing the Zero Rupee Note to the demanding official was explained as success. Examples of success achieved by distributing the Zero Rupee Note cemented the ideology. He explained how each student can contribute by getting adept at filing RTI petitions which will facilitate their immediate surrounding. Students asked questions of different situations and Mr. Anand explained how each situation can be best handled. Zero Rupee Note was distributed to all the students who took a pledge to neither accept nor give bribe. They were very eager to form the student chapter of 5th Pillar called the SAC (Students against Corruption) in their Institution.

Click on the below link to watch the presentation of Mr. Vijay Anand.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmtfxT1jyy0&feature=player_embedded

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RTI petition filed by 5th Pillar to retrieve payment for service provided

2010-09-03T02:41:00.004-04:00

The former Panchayat President of Tirupullani Panchayat in Alangulam Panchayat Union undertook an additional pipe line work connecting Alangulam and Kannangudi villages during the year 2005-2006 at an estimated cost of Rs. 40,000.The work has been successfully completed but the payment is yet to be settled even after four long years. Instead of making the payment to the Panchayat, the Panchayat Union has issued the cheque to a third person, and he has misplaced the cheque. The payment for the work completed in the year 2006 is yet to be settled. The then Panchayat President has submitted a Non- encashement certificate and has requested for payment,which was never taken note of. Representations have been sent to the Panchayat Union, Alangulam as well as the Project Officer, District Development Agency, Ramnad during February, 2010. There has been no response from any of these people. The then Panchayat President approached 5th Pillar for a possible relief. An RTI representation was made on 30th August 2010 to the Public Information Officer, Panchayat Union, Alangulam to provide information under the Right to Information Act, 2005.

The Public Information Officer,
Chennai-34
Tirupullani Panchayat Union,
30.8.2010
Ramanathapuram Dt.

Dear Sir,

Sub : Information under Right to Information Act, 2005-
Outstandings to Mangalam,
Former Panchayat President of Tirupullani
Panchayat-Regarding-Requested.

I request that the following information may please be supplied under
the Right to Information Act, 2005 in respect of the outstandings to
the former Panchayat President of Tirupullani Panchat , Mangalam for
the pipeline work completed by them during the year 2005-06

1. When was the additional pipeline work from Alangulam to Kannangudi
entrusted for execution?

2. When was the work completed?

3. Has a cheque for the pipeline work been issued to the tenderer?

4. Who was the actual tenderer and to whom the cheque was issued?

5. When was the cheque actually issued and what was the amount of the cheque?

6.Has the cheque been encashed as per reconciliation?

7. If the cheque has been handed over to a wrong person, who is
responsible for the issue of the cheque to the wrong person?
8. What action has been action against the person who has handed over
the cheque to the wrong person?
9. If the payment has not been settled so for, when is this likely to
be settled?

I request that the above information may please be supplied at the
earliest, since it is already four years, since the work has been
completed. I have enclosed court fee stamps worth Rs. 10, as per
requirements of the Act.

Thanking you
Yours sincerely,

Repeated RTI appeals by 5th Pillar finally yields results

2010-09-03T02:35:00.001-04:00

Mr. Hari krishnan S/O Rajamanickam , Puliyanthurai village, Kollidam (PO) , Sirkali T K Nagapattinam Dist is a member of our organization who filed a petition under RTI Act(under our guidance) with the Puliyanthuri Panchyat seeking certain information regarding income and expenditure of the panchayat, like details of drinking water pumps provided to the village, details of ENREGA programme implemented in the village, single light scheme to households etc ., for four years from 2006 to 2009. The RTI was filed on 16.12.2009. Since there was no reply from the PIO within the stipulated time of 30 days first appeal to the appellate authority(District collector) was sent on 04.02.2010. There was no reply for the same even after the lapse of 30 days, hence preferred a second appeal to the State information commission on 17.03.2010. Reminders were sent to the commission to expedite the reply on 18.05.2010 and 04.08.2010.

Surprisingly a reply was received from the President of the Puliyanthurai Panchyat on 05.07.210, informing that the complainant can visit the Panchayat office any time and verify the records since it involves huge expenses for sending the details called for. The same reply was given for all 21 questions raised. Instead of visiting the Panchayat office, foreseeing the problems he has to face in verifying the records the complainant requested them to inform the amount of fees to be paid for getting the information and records . Received a letter on 05.08.2010 asking him to pay Rs16890/-. When he approached the Panchayat officials for paying the fees, he was threatened by the President that he will not provide any information and sent him out without accepting the fees amount.

Finally an inquiry came on 19.08.2010 State Information Commission ,Chennai wherein the The Block Development officer of Kollidam Panchayat union, a clerk from Puliyanthurai Panchayat, Mr. Harikrishnan along with Mr Subramani Director Operations attended . The BDO pleaded that he has joined very recently and brought replies for all except 3 questions which he will provide in 2 days. We have demanded to pass strictures on the erring PIO . On hearing both the parties The information commissioner, Dr.Perumalsamy, ordered to give the replies on or before 23rd September. at free of cost as the information is not given in time.

We are informed by the PIO over phone that replies were sent by RPAD on 25.08.2010, and the complainant also confirmed the receipt.

Since there is lot of irregularities /anomalies found between the records provided and the actual happenings in the execution of projects he is planning to report the same to the District Collector for further action or to file a PIL.

Mr. Vijay Anand addresses the Law students of Sastra University, Tanjore

2010-08-28T03:50:00.002-04:00

“Freedom from Corruption” campaign was conducted by 5^th Pillar at the Sastra University in Thanjavur on 18th August, 2010. Mr. Vijay Anand addressed the Law students who are our future policy makers and legal analysts who would be a great asset to carry out the much needed reform in our current socio-political scenario. He emphasized the use of RTI Act to address the delayed services and to redress the anomalies in many departments. Five thought provoking questions were given to the students to better understand their views and stand in the current social network. Simple formalities of say for example obtaining a drivers license or ration card, becomes an ordeal, whereas now with the new Right to Information Act, it has facilitated people in many cases to retrieve their delayed services. Zero Rupee Note a novice tool adopted by 5^th Pillar to combat corruption paved way to interesting discussion about how the officials react when they are rebutted with Zero currency. Mr. Anand listed events when the Zero Rupee Note has aided the public to get their services without having to pay that extra fee. There was an interesting discussion about the disparity in the amount we pay to get the same services say for example getting a two wheeler license. Zero Rupee Note was distributed to all the participants and a pledge was taken to neither accept nor give bribe.

Selection of the Chief Information Commissioner of Tamil Nadu

2010-08-22T23:22:00.000-04:00

Appointment of the new Chief Information Commissioner(CIC) has drawn lot of controversy since the speculation of appointing the Chief Secretary Mr. Sripathi, came into light. Mr. Sripathi had pushed for exemption of directorate of vigilance and anti-corruption (DVAC) and TNVC from the purview of RTI Act during his tenure as the Vigilance Commissioner of TNVC (Tamilnadu Vigilance Commission). The selection committee for the CIC comprises of Chief Minister, Opposition leader and a Minister appointed by the CM. Noted RTI activist V. Madhav of Association for India's Development, Nityanand Jayaraman of Tamil Nadu Right To Information Campaign and K Saravanan of Corporate Accountability Desk, met Ms. Jayalalitha on Sunday and expressed their concern in unfair nomination as the word was already spreading on the appointment of K.Sripathi as the CIC. Inspection of records of past appointees to the State Information Commission has revealed arbitrary nominations. As the current term of CIC of Tamil Nadu, Mr. Ramakrishnan's term comes to an end this month, RTI Activists' campaign for fair nomination gathered momentum from last month when the local activists started applying for the post of CIC to legally challenge the selection procedure and to bring forth a transparent selection process whereby the candidate with the right credentials get the posting of CIC.

India's Pink Vigilante Women

2010-08-22T00:13:00.000-04:00

As I was browsing the web, I came across a very interesting old article in BBC dated in 2007, titled “India's pink vigilante women”. Several hundred vigilante women in the Banda region of Uttar Pradesh identifying themselves by wearing a pink Saree and calling themselves the “gulabi gang”, go after corrupt officials and boorish men with sticks and axes. The leader of the organization, Sampat Pal Devi was married at a very young at the age of 9 and went to live with her husband at 12 and had her first child at 13. Witnessing the misery and discrimination in a land of poverty, casteism and male chauvinism, motivated her to form a group to fend for themselves as they were neglected by all. In a region of male domination she formed an organization of women with similar ideologies and unearthed many corruptive practices and thrashed many officials.

In one instance, when the police authority arrested a lower caste man and kept him in the cell without filing an FIR( First Information Report), the gulabi gang raided the police station and attacked the policeman. Sampat Pal Devi had also taken another step forward and had contested in the local election and secured 2800 votes. We have to laud the tenacity of this person who had the zeal and courage to make a difference in the society. She did not shy away from politics, in-fact she gave it her best shot as she believed that she can bring a change in the system by being in the system.

When a group of women from poverty ridden society who lack proper education can form a group to tackle corruption, we should be able to take a stand against this social evil by standing our ground by denying to pay bribe and try to bring the wrongdoers to justice.

5th Pillar, Paramakudi Chapter was initiated on 16th August 2010

2010-08-21T05:17:00.001-04:00

National People Awareness Organization run by Paramakudi 5th Pillar Chapter coordinator, Mr. Muthukumar, organized the Independence Day celebration on 15th August 2010 at Paramakudi. He conducted district level Essay, Speech and Debate competition and the 1st, 2nd and 3rd winners were selected in each category. On 16th August 2010, 5th Pillar along with National People Awareness Organization organized a meeting in MGR Nagar, Paramakudi to felicitate the winners of 15th event, and to inaugurate the 5th Pillar chapter in Paramakudi.

The District Collector of Ramnad, Sri.Hariharan presided over the meeting and distributed prize cups and certificates issued by 5th Pillar to the 20winners. The collector emphasized the importance of corruption free society and applauded the efforts of 5th Pillar in combating corruption. He asked the public to liberally use the Zero Rupee Note in government offices when they are faced with bribery and encouraged people to stand up against bribe. He said that he would adhere to strict policies in his office to root out corruption.

President of 5th Pillar Mr. Vijay Anand spoke about the use of RTI Act in addressing the delayed services and the success achieved by filing RTI petitions. He mentioned that RTI is an important tool to tackle corruption. Zero Rupee Notes were distributed to all the participants and an oath was taken to neither accept nor give bribe.

Ex- MLA, Mr.Balusamy, spoke about the activities and operations of 5th Pillar and commended the efforts of 5th Pillar. He explained about the 4 pillars of democracy and mentioned how 5th Pillar acts to uphold democracy when one or all the other 4 pillars fail.

Police Inspector, Mr. Sivakumar and Sub- Inspector, Mr. Saravanakumar spoke about the importance of anti-corruption movement and the benefits of corruption free society. Local doctors of Paramakudi took part in this event to bolster their support to the social cause.

District Manager of 108 Ambulance service, Mr. Paul Robinson shared a very sad state of our government hospitals. He mentioned that in government hospitals the parents are charged Rs.500 for male child and Rs. 300 for female child. In this we can also see another social injustice embedded, namely how a male child is prided over a female child. When is our society going to change when we have a partiality even in corruption. Mr. Robinson urged the public to support organizations like 5th Pillar who can eradicate corruption from our society.

Collector Mr. Hariharan inaugurated the Paramakudi chapter of 5th Pillar and urged all the 360 participants to support 5th Pillar by acting as pillars of our democracy.

Mr. VijayAnand speaks at the Sourashtra Chamber of Commerce on 17th August 2010

2010-08-18T22:45:00.004-04:00

Mr. Vijay Anand's speech on corruption and ways to eliminate them from our society was well received by all the 50 businessmen present at the meeting at the Sourashtra Chamber of Commerce on 17^th August 2010 at 4 pm. Mr. Anand who is also an entrepreneur from the IT field could relate to the fellow participants and was able to get the message across that we together could tackle corruption. Many of the participants retold their experiences and the struggle they endured to get their rights when establishing their business and in their day to day operations. Mr. Anand encouraged them by saying that things could be different if we take a strong stand against corruption, and exercise the RTI Act to its fullest. He narrated many examples were our organization filed RTI's on behalf of the public and the favourable results achieved. RTI Act when deployed accurately will expose the culprit, which would facilitate an action to be taken against the wrongdoers.

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President of 5th Pillar, Mr. Vijay Anand addresses the Sourashtra College students in Madurai

2010-08-18T22:43:00.005-04:00

“If we don’t eradicate corruption; corruption will eradicate us. We will have to unite to work against bribery and corruption”, said Mr.Vijay Anand, President of 5th Pillar, when he addressed the Sourashtra College students in Madurai on 17th August, 2010 during the, “Freedom from Corruption” campaign . He first spoke at Sourashtra Men's college, and in the afternoon spoke at Sourashtra Women's college, where he emphasized the importance of the role of students in eliminating corruption as todays students are future leaders, government officials, entrepreneurs and policy makers who can definitely turn around the social scenario by adhering to anti-corruption movement. He spoke about the Zero Rupee Note a novice tool adopted by our organization to empower the public against corruption. The impact of distributing the Zero Rupee Note in real life scenarios and the impact it created on the officials with examples was highlighted by Mr. Anand. He also spoke about the RTI Act, its implementation and successes achieved. His examples of the RTI petitions filed by our organization and the resulting success was a clear demonstration of the effectiveness of the Act. Students took an oath with the Zero Rupee Note, to neither accept nor give bribe, and signed on the 30 x 15 feet Zero Rupee banner to show their solidarity against Corruption.

View Gallery - Sourashtra MEN'S COLLEGE
View Gallery - Sourashtra WOMEN'S COLLEGE

5th Pillar supports Makkal Sakthi Katchi's stand against the suspension of Umasankar IAS

2010-08-18T03:18:00.002-04:00

IAS officer Umasankar's wrongful suspension is a great blow to our democracy. It is a clear example of how honesty is rewarded in the current political scenario. He has always landed in quick sand since his inception as an IAS officer during the reign of both major political parties. Current events we witness unfolding takes us to the period of Imperialism. We feel that we are still being ruled by a King and his word is the final word. The IAS officer has submitted documents to substantiate the fraud that took place in the government departments and the theft of 1000 crore tax payer money by some individuals. We are yet to hear about the actions to be taken to address this issue.

To condemn the suspension order of Mr. Umasankar, Makkal Sakthi Katchi, (Tamil Nadu chapter of Lok Satta Party), along with NGO's like 5th Pillar, Anti Corruption Movement, Nallore vattam, Rettaimalai Srinivasan Peravai, Manitham, PAADAM, FACT India, Thudi, Aathi Thamilar Peravai, Social Awareness movement, Lanjam Kodathor Iyakkam, Jebamani Janatha Party, People's Awareness Campaign Energy, Puravigal iyakkam, Human Rights Organisations, Lawyers Forum for Social Movement, Socialist Janatha Party, Tamilnadu State Bharathiya Janatha Party, organized a major gathering at Kerala Samajam Hall, in Chennai on 12th August 2010 at 5 pm. Speakers from different background spoke on stage expressing their resentment at the way things are unfolding and expressed their dissatisfaction with the present government in the current revenge tactic against a honest officer. Mrs. Sivagami, who quit IAS to enter politics, said the government should fix the culprits, who were responsible for the destruction of cables and machinery of the Arasu Cable TV Corporation, under the Goondas Act. Thamizharivu Manian disclosed the hardships he faced when he wrote exposing the corrupt government practices. He asked the public to reject the current DMK government, soaked in corruption. CPM State secretary G. Ramakrishnan, Senior CPI leader R. Nallakannu, A. S. Kumar (CPI-ML), Devasahayam (retired IAS officer) also spoke at this gathering.

The meeting adopted a resolution, to urge the government to revoke the suspension order of Mr. Umasankar and insisted for a CBI ( Central Bureau of Investigation) enquiry into the exposures made by the IAS officer in the Arasu Cable TV Corporation and disappearance of ETL Infrastructure Ltd.

5th Pillar takes part in Independence Day celebration in Los Angeles

2010-08-17T22:52:00.000-04:00

5th Pillar team in Los Angeles attended the Independence Day celebrations in Los Angeles and distributed the novel tool adopted by our organization to combat Corruption, the Zero Rupee Note. There were close to 2500 attendees for this celebration and creating an awareness of our organization's services to the public is crucial. Most of the NRI's have visiting parents or they themselves will be traveling often to India or face corruption when they invest in India. Many attendees of the event were eager to know what are the services provided by our organization and when they learned that we provide free RTI training sessions and file RTI petitions on behalf of the public they said that they would ask their family in India to contact us for help. Distributing the Zero Rupee Note on Independence Day to create awareness was a great way to empowerment.

5th Pillar files RTI petition on behalf of an NRI

2010-08-16T23:37:00.000-04:00

Mr Chinna Reddy from Andhra Pradesh is living in Canada and his parents are living in Nandyal of Kurnool Dt. in Andhra Pradesh. Along with his parents his nephews and his niece are living and studying in Nandyal. His niece aged 17 , is studying in Intermediate second year. She has been getting anonymous phone calls from a person who is threatening her that he would kidnap her and take her away. He is also threatening her that he would throw acid on her and kill her.

Mr.Chinna Reddy's people have given a complaint to the Nandyal Police Station. A constable came to the house and enquired. There was again a phone call which was attended by the constable himself. The caller threatened that he will kill everybody. The family has traced out the phone numbers of the people who have been making the calls. They have made a complaint to the District Collector, Kurnool on 9th August, 2010., requesting security for the family and the children and also for taking action against the people who are doing the mischief. No reply has been received form the Collector, and no action been taken against the mischief mongers. Being abroad, Mr. Reddy is worried about the security of his family. He has made a representation to the 5th Pillar, to get the problem solved. Based on the information given by Mr. Reddy, 5th Pillar has sent an RTI Representation on the 16th addressed to the Collector, A copy of the RTI representation is reproduced below.

14 August 2010

To,

The Collector of Kurnool,

Kurnool,

AndhraPradesh

Dear Sir,

                Sub Information under Right to Information Act, 2005,-Security problem of Mr. Chinna Reddy's family at Nandyal Regarding-Requested.


        Ref: Representation from Mr.Chinna Reddy , Canada addressed to the Collector of Kurnool Dt.

I wish to enclose a copy of the representation addressed to you by one Mr Chinna Reddy of Canada with regard to the security of his family at Nandyal. I request to be supplied with the following information under the Right to Information Act, 2005

1. Has the representation from Mr. Chinna Reddy been received in the Collectorate of Kurnool and if so on what date?

2. If the representation has been received, what action been taken over this issue which is concerned with the security of the family of a person who is outside the country?

3. Has the information been passed on to the Police people at Nandyal, who is connected with the security?
4. If so what action been taken by the Nandyal Police in this regard?
5. Whether the Police has arrested any of the persons who have been giving threatening calls to the members of the family
6. If not arrested, the reasons for the inaction of the police, inspite of the fact that the telephone numbers of the mischief mongers have already been intimated in the representation?

I request information on the above lines may please be furnished at the earliest.
Thanking You,

Yours Sincerely

(K.Bhanu Kumar)

Executive Director

5th Pillar

Chennai-24

RTI News Article in New York Times

2010-08-16T23:01:00.000-04:00

Recently I saw an article in New York times, “ Right-to-know law gives India's poor a lever” and started to read it as it was relevant to the kind of work we do in our organization. The article was about Chanchala Devi from a desolate village in Jharkand, who had repeatedly tried to receive the support payment from the government to build a new house as she was below poverty line. She was the right candidate eligible for the support funds of $700, but was delayed whereas neighboring wealthier people received the same funds from the government and had constructed new homes. After waiting 4 years she approached an RTI activist and filed an RTI petition. Within days the local bureaucrat sanctioned the funds, and she is on her way to build her new home. This is good for her, but where is the justice for the rest who are still waiting for a miracle to happen and the grants to be sanctioned whereas the money is siphoned wrongfully to the already rich people. The RTI petition should act both ways. One to receive the delayed services and the other to question the services provided to those who are not eligible. These kind of RTI petitions followed by remunerative measures like retroactive repayment with interest of the wrongfully sanctioned grants would help steer the corrupt into the right direction due to fear of severe penalties. We can definitely contain Corruption and create a sense of responsibility if we can use the RTI Act effectively.

5th Pillar addresses RTI to the Retired Government Employees of Cuddalore

2010-08-16T14:02:00.002-04:00

Retired Government employees Association of Cuddalore organized a meeting for the retired government employees at the Pensioners Hall in Cuddalore on August 1, 2010. There were 90 participants for this event and they invited 5^th Pillar for a presentation on the activities of 5^th Pillar and RTI Act. Mr. Santhanamoorthy, District Secretary and Virudhachalam chapter coordinator of 5^th Pillar Mr. Thennavan were the speakers of the event. Special invitee of the day Mr. Venkataraman (Retired DRO), and other participants who were all retired government employees had so many interesting episodes to share and learn from one another. Their experience and knowledge of the intricate functioning of the offices would facilitate to understand the impending problem and methods to adopt to tackle them. Speakers spoke about the beneficial of the RTI Act and how it has helped the public to retrieve their services in due time. 5^th Pillar’s monthly Tamil magazine, “MAATTRAM” was distributed to all participants along with the Zero Rupee Note and RTI pamphlets. The participants would be able to write effective RTI petitions if they were trained as they already are familiar with the working environment of the government offices. The participants were very eager to join as our members and subscribe to our magazine, and requested 5^th Pillar to come for their next meeting to conduct an RTI training session for them. Empowering every citizen is the best way to address Corruption by its horns.

5th Pillar's RTI campaign at Erode Farmers Association

2010-08-16T13:10:00.000-04:00

Farmers Association in Erode is an active body which meets regularly, and for one such meeting on 1st August they invited 5th Pillar for a presentation. 5th Pillar’s Salem chapter coordinator, Mr. Rajamanickam spoke in detail about 5th Pillar’s role in combating corruption using Zero Rupee Note and RTI petitions. Zero Rupee Note with our contact details on the back side of the note, was distributed to all 40 participants. Mr. Rajamanickam’s detailed discourse about RTI and successes achieved by filing the RTI petition, motivated the audience, hence they requested for a detailed RTI training session in their next meeting. Many participants became members of our organization and also subscribed to our monthly Tamil magazine, “MAATTRAM”.

Corruption in Foodgrain storage and distribution

2010-08-09T13:12:00.002-04:00

Corruption has rocketed in all sectors, but its effect in the food grain sector affects all especially the poor. A recent observation of the Supreme Court, highlights the prevalent corrupt practices in the foodgrain storage facility. Due to the negligence of bureaucrats and responsible officials, every year tonnes of foodgrains go to waste due to improper storage facility. No one is accountable for this sorry state. In the same country we see people starving and begging for few kernels of rice for survival,eating rats for survival and we see tonnes of rice going to waste.

Earlier we had reported of corruptive practices in food procurement agency in Thanjavur District were the poor farmers are taxed for their hard earned crop. They are paid Rs.10 less for each bag of rice. When the rice is transported from this society to the storage facility there is lot of discrepancies were they loose some bags. At the storage facility there is different scenario and loss of bags. When the rice is distributed through PDS we hear stories of very poor quality rice being replaced instead of the regular variety. Miscreants replace the good variety rice with the inferior quality, and the people who are really affected by all this are the poor who solely depend on this rice. It is so unfortunate that even if there are governmental policies for the poor they never benefit due to these intermediary corrupt officials. Apart from this we see corruption in the Ration store where the poor go to buy their alloted measure of essential commodities. Most of the time they are denied saying that they have not received stock and the items are sold for stores.

When we see bags of rice being left to rot like seen in the above picture, whereas kids waiting in line for food and malnourished children we see how unfair and imbalanced our society is. Why is it, that there is no sense of empathy in our society. Everyday we hear stories of black money being stashed in offshore accounts and we see poor dying for lack of nourishment. We need sincere officials in all civil service who can work cohesively, complementing one another in maintaining a strong corrupt free society.

97.6 crore paid as bribe by the people living below poverty line (BPL)

2010-08-06T17:10:00.000-04:00

Recent survey on corruption levels by Transparency International-India and the Centre for Media Studies, New Delhi , reveal that families living below poverty level in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry have paid Rs. 97.6 crore as bribe to obtain their basic services, last year alone. This astounding figure transcribes to Rs.477 per household of BPL. The national study estimated that BPL (Below Poverty Line) households paid about Rs 900 crore a year as bribes to get basic services. The study divided the states by their size and ranked them on levels of corruption into 'alarming', 'very high', 'high' and 'moderate'.

The sad state of this entire scenario is that the poor are the ones who suffer to make ends meet and they are the one who become vulnerable to the voracious officials. Everyday we hear and read articles in newspapers about the effects of corruption and bribery on lower income group. We have read about the schools collapsing in rural areas and kids dying. This is all a one day news report, with no follow up action against the perpetrators. The media should also play a role in streaming the news and report on the follow up action developments. This is the reason why freedom fighters and great minds resorted to publishing to get the message out to all to bring about a change in the society. We hear about crores of public money siphoned to an individual, whereas in the same state there are poor struggling to get their basic services like good hospital care, education and so on. The gap between the rich and the poor are widening day by day and the main reason for the widening demarcation is corruption.

5th Pillar files RTI, in respect to Patta allocation

2010-08-06T14:51:00.000-04:00

5th Pillar had sent a RTI Representation to the Public Information Officer, Taluk Office,Ambattur, in respect of a patta allocation to one Mr. Desigan of Chennai-82, on 20^th November, 2009. The letter has been received by him on the 1^st December, 2009. Since no reply was received from him even after 55 days, an appeal was sent to the Appellate Authority of the same Office on the 25th January, 2010. Since there was no reply from the Appellate Authority , an appeal was sent to the Chief Information Commissioner, at Teynampt, on the 24th February, 2010.
The Chief Information Commissioner, in his letter dated 6th July, 2010 summoned Mr. Jayaselvan, the applicant and the Public Information Officer, Taluk Office, Ambattur to appear before the Commission on the 15th of July, 2010. This is the first time that the 5th Pillar has been called for an enquiry by the Commission based on an appeal preferred by the Organization. Accordingly, Mr. K.Bhanu Kumar, Executive Director, and Mr. Jayaselvan, RTI Coordinator of 5th Pillar appeared before the Commission with the connected records. The Public Information Officer, Ambattur was also present. The Information Commissioner Mr. Srinivasan, conducted detailed enquiries and furnished the following observations in his Proceedings NO. 5465/Enquiry/2010 dated 15.7/2010.

1. The Public Information Officer should furnish the details called for in the representation within 10 days of the receipt of the Proceedings. and inform the fact to the Commission.

2. The District Collector, Tiruvallore has been requested to show cause to the Public Information Officer, why action should not be taken against him under Section 20 (1) of the Right to Information
Act, for not providing replies to the RTI representation and for the appeal to the Appellate Authority.

The concerned party, in this case Mr. Desigan was very happy and relieved. Successes like this is always a motivation to move forward.

Reward for Honesty meted out to Mr. Umasankar IAS

2010-08-06T13:50:00.002-04:00

Mr. Umasankar IAS was victimized by the Tamil Nadu Government on grounds of falsified community certificate. He entered civil service in 1990 under the Dalit quota, which is currently being disputed. The media is reporting facts that he has always been an honest officer and has been instrumental in unearthing a discrepancy in 1995, in Madurai in the construction of cremation facility, and during his tenure as the Managing Director of the Arasu Cable Company (ACC) and Electronic corporation of Tamil Nadu (ELCOT), he unearthed a major scandal of missing subsidiary companies with allocated government funds in multiples of crores.In spite of all the support and trust he is still under suspension and no action is being taken to study the matter of dispute, namely the vanishing of 700 crores of tax payers money.

Earlier, in 2006, when Umashankar was MD of the Electronics Corporation of Tamil Nadu (ELCOT), it floated a joint venture company with New Era Technologies Ltd called ELNET, which in turn, launched a subsidiary company called ETL Infrastructure Ltd. "This company purchased 25 acres of land at Pallikaranai near Chennai and constructed an IT park of 17 lakh square feet. It also got IT special economic zone status from the Centre by projecting itself as a subsidiary of the state-owned ELCOT. But later, ETL became a wholly privately-owned company," the AIADMK chief said. She alleged that the officer was shunted out from ELCOT after he raised questions about the disappearance of it subsidiary from records along with its Rs 700 crore assets.

Right now he is suspended and facing disciplinary action for falsified documents. The media and opposition party is projecting that all this is due to his intervention in the mismanagement of funds in the Governmental communication sector. Mr. Umasankar has described the events as a retribution for his honesty. Being said, there is yet a commission to be formed to evaluate the assets of the all the communication departments involved. Right now the focus is to get Mr. Umasankar out in the clear, but at the same time an inquiry into the accounts of the major cable companies involved in this controversy, which have siphoned taxpayers money for personal gains have to be undertaken immediately. Someone has to be accountable to the lost funds and an inquiry is imminent. This would be a very good issue to watch and see how it unfolds in the coming months, and if the public would ever come to know about the source and distribution of funds.

5th Pillar in Neyveli Book Fair, 9-18 July, 2010

2010-08-06T13:42:00.002-04:00

Zero Rupee Note and RTI pamphlet were distributed by Annai book Stall, instituted by the Dharmapuri chapter coordinator, Mr. Vinoth at Neyveli Book Fair from 9-18th July, 2010 . People from neighbouring towns like Cudalore, Chidhambaram and other nearby towns, who visited the fair and received the ZRN and RTI pamphlet of 5th Pillar were very enthusiastic about learning the services provided by our organization. The campaign was a huge success as we received many calls from the public as a follow up, and many joined as members and requested help in addressing their pending matters. Mr. Vinoth's answers to all the queries put forth by the visitors, motivated them to approach the respective chapters of 5th Pillar. Many of them who were having problems in receiving services approached our office and have initiated remedial measures by filing an RTI petition.

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5th Pillar US Team takes part in FeTNA 2010 Tamil convention

2010-07-27T14:40:00.000-04:00

5th Pillar team in US, took part in the FeTNA 2010 Tamil Event that took place in Waterbury, Connecticut from 3rd July-5th July, 2010. FeTNA is an umbrella organization of all the Tamil Sangams in North America. Film industry dignitaries, Tamil literary scholars, folk dancers and so on graced the occasion. We put up a table and distributed the Zero Rupee Note to the participants of the convention. Creating awareness is the key to tackle corruption. Some approached us with questions regarding the services provided by our organization. All the NRI's have encountered bribery in some form or the other. Some retold the experiences they face when they buy real estate property in India, starting from the registration to getting the electricity connection and so on. They had interesting stories, like when the corrupt official learns that the client is an NRI the demand increases multi-fold. We encouraged the participants to contact our offices in India when they or their relatives encounter delayed services.

RTI awareness campaign at Puliyanoor village in Dindivanam

2010-07-27T14:37:00.002-04:00

Orientation program about 5^th Pillar and the RTI Act was conducted by Mr. Jayaselvan on 25^th July at Puliyanoor Village in Dindivanam. Tamizh Studio organized the screening of their short film in the village and had invited us to give an introductory session of the anti-corruption mission we have embarked on. The audience were excited to see the Zero Rupee Note, although some had already seen it in the newspapers and TV. Mr. Jayaselvan spoke about the successes achieved by handing in the Zero currency to the corrupt official demanding bribe. Formulating the right questions to get the best outcome was emphasized in his speech. His disclosure of the successes achieved by filing RTI petitions, motivated people to approach him after the presentation with the problems they were facing. Some of them mentioned to visit the Chennai office to proceed further on their pending issues by taking our help in filing an RTI petition.

5th Pillar campaign's on RTI at Sirkali

2010-07-27T14:32:00.001-04:00

Social activists in Sirkali, Mr.Sudhakar and Mr. Thillai Natarajan organized a public event on 4th July at Sri Vanivilas Primary school in Sirkali to sensitize the public on the role of corruption in our society and effective strategies to be adopted to tackle corruption. Director Operations of 5th Pillar, Mr. Subramani spoke on the topic of corruption, and RTI Act. His speech opened the forum for discussion, of all the corrupt practices prevalent in our society, and the participants were eager to share their encounters. People encountering delay in obtaining services due to reluctance to pay bribe, were thrilled to learn ways of approaching the issue placidly. Zero Rupee Note, a novice tool adopted by our organization is used by the public when they are demanded to pay money. Every participant were encouraged to hand in the Zero currency instead of actual money to the demanding personnel. Mr. Baskaran, a member from Kumbakonam chapter of 5th Pillar, spoke on the successes of filing an RTI. He explained in detail about filing the RTI petition, expected processing time and the fee involved. When the audience comprising of agriculturists, students, businessmen, NGO's were made aware of how simple it is to file a petition demanding the answers for delayed services, they were very enthused to adopt the same route. Participants joined hands with our organization by becoming members, and some were interested in initiating a local chapter of 5th Pillar in their hometown.

Mr. Vijay Anand addresses the Indian community in Seattle

2010-07-19T03:36:00.003-04:00

Mr. Vijay Anand was invited by the AID ( Association for India's Development) foundation of Portland, to address a public gathering at the Intel JF Campus on 18th June, 2010. The topic of Mr. Anand's speech was “ Freedom from corruption and RTI Act” His descriptive speech on all aspects of functioning of the organization and the adoption of RTI Act to facilitate quick services was appreciated and encouraged by the software elites. They were very eager to learn more about the details of various scenarios to better understand the extend of corruption prevailing in our country. Some of them had interesting stories to share of the problems encountered by their relatives in India and were eager to know if it could be tackled. It was a very interesting group discussion, that always paves way to new ideas and implementation.

5th Pillar conducts awareness campaign at wedding receptions

2010-07-19T03:35:00.001-04:00

At the wedding reception of Murali( Vice President of Bank of America, New York) and Kiruthika, on 20^th and 21 st June, in Coimbatore 5^th Pillar volunteers distributed Zero Rupee note and RTI information pamphlet to all the attendees of the wedding. Weddings are attended by people from various cities and towns and hence serves as a good backdrop for propaganda.

At the wedding reception of Kalaiselvan and Renuga, on 2^nd July 2010, at KSR Sakarapani Chettiyar Mahal, Panruti, 5^th Pillar volunteers were provided a table to distribute informational materials to all the attendees of the marriage. The volunteers were welcomed and many guests showed great interest and some of them joined as members in our organization. One of the guests who was very positive about our mission encouraged us by tying our banner in full visibility for all the guests arriving for the reception.

Mr. Vijay Anand speaks at the Fifth Summer University for Democracy at Strasbourg, France

2010-07-19T02:48:00.000-04:00

President of 5th Pillar Mr. Vijay Anand was invited as a guest speaker by the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict, for The Fifth Summer University for Democracy - “The Crisis of Leadership” conference held in Strasbourg, France from 28th June to 2nd July. He addressed a gathering of 650 participants from the Council of Europe network of 16 school of Political studies, as well as experts and guests from all over the world, on the topic of “ Civil Resistance and accountable governance: role of citizens in the fight against corruption and social and economic injustice democratization and democratic sustainability”. He elaborated on the operational strategies of 5th Pillar, and the ongoing field activities in curtailing corruption. The novice tool adopted by 5th Pillar, the Zero Rupee Note, irked the interest of all present, and many have requested to adopt the Zero currency in their respective country to empower their countrymen. As most of the participants attending the conference were from the political science background, their passion for good governance by way of transparency by curtailing corruption served as focal point of discussion.

5th Pillar stall at the Coimbatore Exhibition

2010-07-19T02:32:00.001-04:00

Coimbatore chapter of 5^th Pillar opened a stall at the annual exhibition in Coimbatore. The exhibition is visited by throngs of people that houses diverse stores, games and other attractions. The exhibition commenced on 21st May and closed on 27th June, and served as popular outdoor recreation during the summer months. 5^th Pillar stall manned by dedicated volunteers on rotational basis, was a great way to reach thousands of people visiting the fair. The volunteers in the store educated the people on ways of tackling corruption in day to day life and explained about attaining basic services by adopting RTI Act. Services provided by our organization was highlighted and the public were encouraged to approach us if they faced a dire situation pertaining to bribery and stalled services. The exhibition was attended by people from neighboring small towns and villages and so it served as a good venue for the best propaganda. Nearly 550 people enrolled to attend the weekly meetings, and 215 people enrolled as paid members in our organization. Some of them subscribed for our monthly Tamil magazine, MAATTRAM. Public support and encouragement is vital to provide better services to them in return. The stall in the exhibition created good visibility for our organization.

High School graduates ordeal in joining Professional Studies is addressed

2010-06-14T01:20:00.001-04:00

Getting admission into professional programs like Medicine, Engineering, Dental, Veterinary, Agriculture and Law after high school completion is highly competitive and especially for kids who do not come from an educated background have to rely on hearsay and choose the program according to their understanding. In addition to this many do not have the financial resources to put them through these programs and so even after achieving good marks in their public exams cannot go for professional studies.

The recent scheme First Graduate Students, was initiated specifically to address this situation. There is no caste discrimination or financial demarcation enforced to obtain these scholarships. As long as there are no graduates in their family and the student is the first to enter college, the government will pay the tuition fees for the professional course the student joins. The student has to get admission by merit into the professional college in order to avail this program. The students have to get a certificate from the Tasildhar of their community to attest that he/she is the first to enter college. Of 1073 petitions received from youths for this scheme, 869 applicants are granted first graduate student certificates, and the first batch of 27 certificates where distributed to the youths by the Transport Minister K.N.Nehru in Trichy on 9th June. Similar to this there are many schemes and scholarships in place by the Tamil Nadu government, which most of the citizens are unaware as reluctant to pursue due to the extensive bureaucratic hurdles. First the students should be notified of all the schemes available by distributing a pamphlet or there should be a counselor in government schools who should guide the kids into respective scholarship they qualify.

We in 5th Pillar have been voicing these ideas to the public and one mode of spreading information is through media. Director of Operations of 5th Pillar, Mr. Subramani, spoke in JayaPlus TV on 24th May, about student loans and answered calls that he received during the program. The media are also taking part in empowering our citizens by creating such informative programs for the viewers.

On 5th June in another JayaPlus TV interview, Mr. Bhanukumar, Retired Executive Director of 5th Pillar and Mr. Subramani took part in an interactive program, on the topic primary and secondary education in the state of Tamil Nadu. The subjects covered were standard of education in private and Government schools, the impact of the Govt, order on the fee structure,, detention of students in elementary classes, the impact of SAMACHEER Kalvi in the educational system, malpractices in private schools, etc.

Empowering our citizens with information is the first step towards overall success and that is what we are trying very hard through our organization.

Exhibiting Affiliation to 5th Pillar helped a citizen obtain his Voter ID

2010-06-13T14:29:00.001-04:00

5^th Pillar coordinator of Dharmapuri District, Vinoth had an interesting story to share with us. His personal success by approaching the authorities as part of 5^th Pillar team is very interesting. This shouldn't be the case. Every citizen should get his rights at the proper course of time. That is what we are trying hard to achieve, which we would if we all join together and take a rooted stand against corruption.

Vinoth lost his Voters ID, three years ago and had not taken it seriously at that time. He applied for a new voters id last year before the MP elections, for which he paid the designated fee of Rs.15/- and attached 2 passport size photograph along with his application. It has been more than a year and he did not get his new card, neither did he receive any communication as to the delay of issuing his new Voters ID. Vinoth approached the District Collector's office clad in 5^th Pillar t shirt, on 17^th May, 2010, and spoke to the collector Mrs. Amudha directly, and explained the long delay in receiving his ID. The Collector's office contacted the relevant department in charge of issuing the Voters ID, which is also housed inside the Collector's office campus, and the ID was given to Vinoth in a few minutes. This is a great success story for 5^th Pillar, but sorry state of our government offices. Any citizen disregarding any affiliations to any organization should be able to have access to all the services entitled to oneself.

5th Pillar's awareness campaign through media, JayaPlus TV

2010-06-09T01:20:00.001-04:00

Awareness is a key factor to tackle corruption. Citizens should first be aware of their rights and the process involved in obtaining their rights. Ignorance in this aspect paves way for middlemen to cash in.
To address this representatives from 5th Pillar had been appearing in JayaPlus TV periodically for half hour to explain about ways to confront corruption and educate people on addressing different daily issues. On May 24th, Director of Operations, 5th Pillar, Mr. Subramani, was interviewed for half an hour in JayaPlus TV, and he spoke on the topic of education loans for high school graduates to pursue their collegiate studies. Getting loans from banks have always been an ordeal for poor parents who aspire higher studies for their kids. Mr. Subramani explained the stipulations for obtaining the student loan, the interest rate and eligibility criteria, to give a clear idea to the viewers so that they would be aware if they are wronged. In his address he mentioned that a student is eligible for a loan if his total family income is 4.5 lakhs or less, and the interest is waived for technical courses till the starting date of repayment which is after the completion of their college education. During the course of the interview, Mr. Subramani also answered calls from viewers who had questions about different scenarios. Shows like this are eye-openers to the citizens who are unaware of the procedures for services.

5th Pillar, Dharmapuri Chapter retrieved the swindled money from Government School Administrators

2010-06-08T03:43:00.000-04:00

Dharmapuri Chapter of 5th Pillar had taken up an initiative to propagate the message of anti-corruption by displaying banners of 5thPillar and Zero Rupee Note at main communal centers like the bus stand where there is a great number of congregation of people. Banners were displayed in 8 small towns around Dharmapuri, namely Harur, Penagaram, Morappur, Pappireddipatty, Nallampalli, Nallampalli and Palacode. Volunteers of 5th Pillar also distributed Zero Rupee Notes and RTI( Right to Information) pamphlets to all the passersby to create an awareness of ways to tackle corruption and the organization that supports and stands behind all the citizens that would take a stand against this social evil. Dharmapuri Chapter coordinator, Mr. Vinoth, took the campaign further and distributed 2500 Zero Rupee Notes and pamphlets in Collector's campus. This was televised by many local channels which gave a wide publicity for the cause and Vinoth was invited for a one hour TV interview by a local channel there, where he answered queries from 20 callers.

The campaign was a huge success as the informational materials distributed at vantage points had reached the masses and numerous people are still approaching our organization seeking help to solve their pending issues. One such issue worth mentioning here, was the intervention of our organization in a scam conducted by some miscreants in the government school of Thottapatti, near Morappur in Dharmapuri District. 5TH pillar dharmapuri team received a information that a government school in Thootapatti village is collecting admission fees of 300 rs for 6th standad and 500 Rs for 9 standard admission in a Xerox centre located opposite to the school. A hand written chit is given as a receipt token of cash which infers for admission. The funds are collected in terms of Parents Teachers Association. Vinoth, Dharmapuri Chapter coordinator approached the District Collector and District Chief Education Officer (CEO), and urged to take immediate action against the social outlaws who are taxing from the poor who are already struggling to make ends meet and still try to educate their kids. As a result the money taxed from the poor parents was reverted back to them. This has instilled a great sense of confidence in the public to believe that it is still possible to walk the straight line.

5th Pillar Virudhachalam Chapter helped 200 people to obtain drivers license without bribing

2010-06-07T02:42:00.002-04:00

5th Pillar's Virudhachalam Chapter conducted a chapter meeting at Raja Mahal in Virudhachalam and had invited Dr.Valluvan ( President – Anti Corruption Movement), Mr.Rajendran ( Motor Vehicle Inspector – Virudhachalam), Mr.Palani (Vigilance Inspector) and Mr. Subramani( Director of Operations, 5th Pillar). District chapter coordinator Mr. Santhanamurthy, had organized the event and all the dignitaries had something to say about corruption. Dr.Valluvan spoke on the effectiveness of using the Right to Information Act, and stressed on emphasizing the State Information Commission to expedite their response on the pending files. Mr. Rajendran, spoke on the importance of carrying a valid drivers license and the regulations and safety rules to adhere for overall safety. He also mentioned that 5th Pillar chapter at Virudhachalam had been instrumental in guiding people to obtain drivers license without having to pay bribe. Mr. Palani, Vigilance Inspector, spoke about corruption inside Hight court premises, and how it affects the people. He also stressed the people to take an active stand against corruption. Mr. Santhanamurthy who had been an ardent advocate to obtaining services without paying bribe, had been instrumental in aiding nearly 200 people from Virudhachalam and neighboring towns to obtain drivers license from Virudhachalam RTO( Road Transport Organization) office, without paying bribe. Mr. Rajendran, distributed the license to all the 200 people at this event to establish the fact that it is still possible to obtain services without paying bribe, if we unitedly confront corruption.

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5th Pillar's, Freedom from Corruption Campaign to Disha Scholars

2010-06-07T02:03:00.004-04:00

Corporate Social Responsibility is a form of self regulation integrated into a business model to ensure its support to law, ethical standards, and international norms. Consequently, business would embrace responsibility for the impact of its activities on the environment, consumers, employees, communities, stakeholders and all other members of the public sphere. To this effect, Ma foi Management Consultants, a major HR service provider and staffing company in India, have initiated Disha Scholarship scheme, to help the underprivileged children who aspire for higher education. 5^th Pillar was invited to one of their events to talk to these scholars about corruption and ways to tackle them. Director of Operations of 5^th Pillar, Mr. Subramani addressed the students about the evils of corruption and the novice tool adopted by 5^th Pillar to tackle corruption namely the Zero Rupee Note. The Zero Rupee Note that resembles the 50Rs Indian currency was very captive to these kids and their curiosity was quenched with explanation of successes obtained by handing these notes to the corrupt officials. This lead to an interactive session with lot of sparked queries from the active minds. Even though they accept the fact that corruption is an evil practice, one of the student had a query,” How to obtain my basic rights like birth certificate, drivers license and so on without giving bribe, when everyone around me get these documents by shelling out few hundreds”. Mr. Subramani, replied saying that one has to be first aware of the standard fee structure for obtaining these documents and should also prepare the paperwork in order and time. The student community showed a lot of enthusiasm towards fighting the prevalent widespread corruption. "We have thought and talked much about deep-rooted corruption and government insensitiveness and today, through this discussion, we have realized that it is our duty to do our share in reality and moreover awareness on fees structure was a useful insight'' said Jhansi Rani , a Mafoi Scholar during the thanking note. At the end of the event, Zero Rupee Note was distributed to all the participants and a pledge was taken by all to neither accept nor give bribe.

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If not us, who? If not now, when?

2010-06-06T02:12:00.000-04:00

Good day everyone!!!
I want to tell you something that might trigger your thoughts. You might have talked about this topic many times with your friends and family. I am sure you care about it, but you don’t believe that YOU can make a DIFFERENCE or you strongly believe that it can’t be changed. Have you guessed it??? Yes, you are right. It’s about our country and the problems we face in our day to day life…
We are a developing nation for more than 60 years… Our development really gained momentum from 1991 after the economic reforms. People sensed that there are opportunities for everyone to create wealth and live prosper. Education is the key driver for our growth. You can see that in your case and people around you. Millions of people are out of poverty and we have excelled in many sectors like IT, space research, biotechnology, banking, telecommunications etc…
In the growth process, we have consciously neglected to act on a major reform – ELIMINATE CORRUPTION IN INDIA. The result is unbelievable. Every public service in our country can be obtained only by paying EXTRA to the officials. Right from a child is born to his/her end of life, he/she has to bribe for every single service from the government. Birth certificate, community certificate, driver license, marriage certificate, ration card, property registration, passport, police verification, water connection, gas connection, police FIR, court judgment, public hospital services, senior citizen services, pension, death certificate, dependents eligibility services and the list goes on…
You and I know the impact of corruption on our lives very well. Our dads paid 20 rupees for their driver licenses, we pay 100 rupees for ours and our kids will pay 500 rupees for their licenses. The BIG question is, what are we going to do about it??? Till now, we have either ignored or whined about our state. We have increased our tolerance level assuming that society cannot be changed and blamed the system/politicians. We expect someone to bring the change and clean the mess. Have you ever heard about a change in which people is not part of it? All major movements like French revolution, American independence, Elimination of slavery in America, Indian independence struggle, Abolition of Sati, License Raj reform , were successful only when the people believed in the change and actively participated for the cause. Our country is known for social reforms and we had great reformers in time. We are now again in the crossroads. We can either ask our sons & daughters to pay their part of EXTRA or believe in ourselves that we can eliminate corruption completely from our society within 10 years.
Organize for CHANGE!!!
What if I tell you that you can take concrete steps towards a corruption free India? What if I ask you to forget all the practical difficulties for five minutes and believe that you personally can bring the change? Yes… it’s possible!!! You and I can eliminate corruption from our nation, if we start believing in ourselves. We have the technology, and ability to organize change. All we need is willingness and confidence to take the first step towards it. There is a movement in India called 5th Pillar that is organizing citizens against corruption. Innovation is the core of the movement. A Zero Rupee note for showing our resistance to corruption and it works!!! Read more about Zero Rupee note in the world bank blog site.

How can we contribute?
This is very important. We all know that the problem exists and we need to solve it. At the same time, we have our personal life, career and entertainment. But, that’s not an excuse to ignore action. We can do this without affecting our regular life. Seven things you can do in the next seven days….
Declare that our nation is corruption free by 2020.
Believe that you can bring change by active participation.
Promise to neither accept not give bribe.
Join the 5th pillar movement (www.5thpillar.org)
Volunteer your free time in the grass root activities and take leadership.
Donate one day lunch money every month to run the movement.
Spread the word to your friends and family.
The next 10 years (from now to 2020) is very crucial for us to become a developed nation. This is our last chance to leave a better nation for our future generations. If we capitalize it, we will be remembered as a generation of reformers who believed in ourselves and our future. Please think about it, talk to your friends and family, believe in the cause, contribute to the change and spread the word. We can eliminate corruption from all levels of our society before 2020.
If not us, who? If not now, when???

Greed lands a Village Administrative Officer in Jail in Kancheepuram District

2010-06-03T11:43:00.000-04:00

Mr. Murugesan, mason residing at Satras, in Kalpakkam near Chennai, wanted to register his father's 8 cent property in his name to be eligible for the scheme of free housing provided by the government. When he approached the Village Administrative Officer (VAO) of Meyyur, Mr. Kanniyappan, he demanded a bribe of Rs.20,000. As bribing as become a norm in our sorry state of affairs, and in order to expedite the paper work and process Mr. Murugesan, parted with Rs.20,000. But the registered patta had a wrong survey number and when he went back to the VAO to have it corrected he was again demanded Rs.10,000. He was baffled and helpless and that is when he approached 5^th Pillar for support and guidance. He was directed to the office of Deputy Commissioner of Police, Vigilance and Anti corruption, Mr. Thirunavukkarasu, who initiated a sting operation to catch the VAO when he is accepting the bribe amount. VAO Kanniyappan, was caught red handed when accepting the bribe money and is currently in Madhuranthagam prison awaiting court hearing for sentencing. Let us hope that fear would instill discipline in corrupt officials.

Does Low income play a role in Corruption ?

2010-05-04T23:21:00.001-04:00

As per the 6th pay commission average pay hike of 21% for Central Government employees was announced in January 2008. We have been for long relating corruption to the low salaries. I called the police station at Thousand lights police station and introduced myself as Shobila and a member of 5th pillar. I explained that i am writing an article and need some information. The person who picked up the call was least bothered about who i was and he did not mind to ask my whereabouts after i said that i am calling from the US. He answered my questions meticulously. I was a little scared talking to them due to the scary stories that I have heard about the police in India as I grew up.

The least pay scale for a government employee is Rs.5,200 which is the basic and with allowances a new police constable recruit will get Rs.11,000 per month which is a decent salary. I confirmed this with the police man who attended my phone call. I guess we must stop blaming the pay scale any more.

Corruption in Tourism Sector

2010-04-28T02:22:00.000-04:00

Corruption is a issue in itself which has to be educated to one and all about what is corruption and how we contribute to it unwittingly. An article in Hindu, about tourists entering the restricted Bandipur forest area from Kerala, intrigued me to think, if the tourists who went on these trips with the tour operators realize that they are concluding with the lawbreakers. Excitement and curiosity gets the better of us. In order to cross restricted forest zones corruption should have been involved. It is very sad to see that citizens who cry in other cases against bribery and corruption forget about it when venturing into such illegal tours. In this case, they are not only a party to corruption but also against wildlife protection as they are disturbing the natural fauna by hindering the animals from moving freely in their habitat to the waterhole. To eradicate corruption first every citizen should understand what is corruption and use their better judgement and always stay on the right side of the law.

5th Pillar participates in Round Table Discussion with Tamil Nadu Right to Information campaign

2010-04-28T02:00:00.002-04:00

5th Pillar participated in the Round Table discussion on key
issues pertaining to the implementation of the Right to Information
Act in Tamil Nadu organized by the Tamil Nadu Right to Information
Campaign, on the 31st March, 2010 at Egmore, Chennai. Executive Director of 5^th Pillar, Mr. Bhanu Kumar represented 5^th Pillar in this meet. The following
subjects were discussed.

1. Why this program?
2. Key issues-Challenges and achievements pertaining to the
implementation of the RTI (Right to Information) in Tamil Nadu.
3. Recent achievements and challenges in the working of the Act.
4. T.N. Information Commission-Structure, procedure, and review
including decisions of the Commission.
5. Sharing experiences of the working of the RTI Act in relation to
PIO's, Appellate authority, and Information Commission.

6. Significant decisions of the Tamil Nadu Information Commission and
experiences learnt from the Kerala Information Commission and
Karnataka RTI activists.

7. Monitoring the role of Government and Public Authorities in
promoting the RTI Act especially Section 4 (1) a,b,c,d

8. Strengthening the Tamil Nadu Right to Information Campaign to
monitor the working of the RTI Act.

The following points were highlighted

1. Problems connected with the voluntary disclosures of information by
public authorities
2. Duties and responsibilities of PIO's (Public Information Officer) and APIO's (Assistant Public Information Officer)
3. Inadequate response to the information requested, providing partial information, wrong information by PIO's and Appellate authorities.
4. Activities of the State Information Commission.
5. Role of the Government in promoting RTI
6. Courts, Public Authorities and the RTI.
7. Failure to proceed with penalties and disciplinary action.
8. The powers of the Government to exempt departments like Vigilance
and Anti corruption from the purview of the RTI Act.
9. To nominate Officers at State and District level to discuss with
the Activists of the RTI.
10. Exchange of information among the Activists of RTI.
11. Finalize the demands to be given to the Tamil Nadu State Government.

The following recommendations were made at the end of the Meeting.
Government:

1. Ensure appointment of PIO's, APIO's, AA's (Appellate Authority) at all PA's(Public Authority) under the control of the State Government.
2. Launch an aggressive training campaign to cover all relevant staff
from PA's on the obligations of PA's under the Act, and rights of
citizens.
3. Allocate sufficient resources to PA's to help them implement RTI Act effectively
4. For PA's which receive a high volume of RTI applications, appoint
dedicated PIO's to handle all RTI inquiries.
5. Provide necessary infrastructure resources and support in a timely
manner to the State Information Commission. Such resources would include additional clerical staff to manage the communication they get, to ensure so that
it can run smoothly, thereby leading to an effective implementation.

State Information Commission

1. The Commission should impose penalties, without exception on all
PIO's in case of denial or inordinate delay in giving replies.
2. An efficient filing system needs to be put in place to ensure easy
access to files and communication.
3. The commission should complete its website without delay and put up
all their decisions on their website and to update it continuously.

The meeting served as a good forum to discuss critical issues pertaining to RTI Act. If all the requested implementations are put to work we can see a good change in the present scenario.

5th Pillar's anti-corruption campaign in Coimbatore

2010-04-20T02:07:00.001-04:00

A meeting was convened on 9^th Feb, 2010 at the Corporation Kalai Arangam in Coimbatore to discuss the regularization of platform shop keepers in the city of Coimbatore. There has always been complaints from the platform shopkeepers about the influx of bribery by police officials as very explicitly portrayed in our celluloids by our mass heroes. This meeting was attended by the platform shopkeepers, Collector, Municipal authorities and District Superintendent of Police, to regulate the erection of the platform shops to benefit the shopkeepers by confirming their status , so that they will not be extorted by threats of legal action, and also to regulate traffic to ease public mobility. This meeting was instrumental in drawing to a conclusion regarding the areas where shops can be established and dimension of the shop that can be erected so that there are clear rules and no ambiguity that leads to bribery and corruption. 5^th Pillar was invited by the organizers and our speaker Dr. K.K.Krishnamurthy, spoke on Freedom from Corruption and RTI (Right to Information). 5^th Pillar members distributed Zero Rupee Notes to everyone in the audience of varied demography to establish the concept of anti-corruption in all.

5th Pillar's awareness campaign at SNS college of Technology

2010-04-20T01:10:00.000-04:00

The ECE ( Electrical & Computer Engineering) Department of SNS College of Technology in Coimbatore, conducted a 2 day event called ELCONATOR on 5th and 6th March 2010, which was attended by ECE students of other institutions of Tamil Nadu. The event was attended by 400 students in total, and on the request of the institution we setup a stall in their premises, displayed our banner and distributed the Zero Rupee Notes and RTI pamphlets to all the students and staff attending this event. Students showed a great interest in this social cause and many registered to become 5th Pillar members and some of the colleges also showed interest to open a student chapter of 5th Pillar in their respective institutions. Some institutions have invited us to their institutes to give a presentation on "Freedom from corruption" topic. Students who are experiencing corruption first hand now that they are getting to be independent and facing the real world are very aware of the misery and are very motivated to joins us in the common platform.

5th Pillar, RAAC and EERAM of Coimbatore conduct mass cleaning of foothills of Maruthamalai

2010-04-20T00:41:00.000-04:00

5th Pillar joined hands with RAAC( Residents Awareness Association of Coimbatore), and EERAM ( Equality Empowerment & Rights Awareness Movement) in Coimbatore, to take part in the mass cleaning of the foothills of Maruthamalai, a famous Hindu shrine in Coimbatore, on 4^th April 2010. Alagana Kovai, project initiated by RAAC, emphasizes on clean pollution free environment, and one of their projects is to erect good infrastructure to accommodate the growing tourists population who visit this famous historical shrine. Their plan to construct a bus stand, toilet facilities, dining hall, parking spaces for tourist vehicles have been approved by the municipality and to get the project going they conducted a mass cleaning of the foothills of Maruthamalai. More than 500 students from various academic institutions in and around Coimbatore took part in this event along with the 5^th Pillar members. 5^th Pillar members distributed Zero Rupee Notes to all the participants and the public to create anti- corruption awareness. People coming to temple to offer thanks and request for favours and remedies were equipped with Zero Rupee Note to be used as a tool in need.

5th Pillar conducts Anti-corruption awareness to Management students of PSG Tech, Coimbatore on 4.02.2010

2010-04-16T06:13:00.001-04:00

200 students of the Management Department of PSG Tech, convened at the convention Hall to tAke part in the anti-corruption awareness program conducted by 5th Pillar. The speaker of that day, Mr. Viswanathan, a noted Businessman and Social Activist spoke on the topic, "RTI and Freedom fron Corruption". As a businessman addressing the management students, he was able to explicity relate the affliction of corruption in the business sector. 5th Pillar's role in society to combat corruption using the novice tool, Zero Rupee Note and the Right to Information Act was the highlight of his address. Examples of cases were our organization filed RTI petitions on behalf of the citizens, to obtain ration card, land patta etc., captivated the audience, who in turn had interesting queries about situations encountered by family or friends. Dr.K.K.Krishnamoorthy, former Dean of Tamilnadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore was the next speaker who elaborated on the social evil, Corruption. His address on Right to Information Act and its efficacy in obtaining basic rights of services was elaborated for clear understanding of the simplicity of the Act in itself. The speech was well received by the students who were encouraged to join hands with our team to tackle corruption.

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5th Pillar presentation at Dr. Ambedkar Youth Club, Coimbatore on 26.01.2010

2010-04-16T05:56:00.002-04:00

5th Pillar Coimbatore chapter have been active propagandists of anti-corruption campaign in their township. This has been the second event in this year and in this meeting the speaker Mr. Viswanathan, a noted Businessman and Social Activist, who is a 5th Pillar member was speaking about corruption and its torment on ordinary citizens. His address included lot of facts and incidents of corruption, and its impact on us. Zero Rupee Note, the novice tool adopted by 5th Pillar was distributed to all the 70 participants and an oath of abstinence from bribery was proclaimed. The speaker's note on Right to Information Act and the support provided by our organization for all the citizens to address their problems by filing RTI petitions, was lauded by the participants. His mention on all the field activities of 5th Pillar was inspirational to the young at heart and many showed interest in the cause by joining the organization.

5th Pillar, Coimbatore chapter conducts Awareness Campaign

2010-04-16T05:53:00.002-04:00

NSS students of Karpagam Arts & Science college who were at a camp at Government Higher secondary school at Malumichampatty, on 14th January, 2010 had invited 5th Pillar for a presentation on the topic of "Freedom from Corruption". Dr. B.Ilango, former vice- chancellor of Bharathiyar University, Coimbatore spoke on corruption and its effects on day to day life of every citizen. Mr. Vijay Anand, President of 5th Pillar spoke on the header, "Freedom from Corruption". "Zero Rupee Note and filing of RTI (Right to Information) petitions were the tools adopted primarily by 5th Pillar to fight corruption", said Mr. Anand. Recount of many success stories obtained by handing out Zero Rupee Note to corrupt officials were motivational to the students. 5th Pillar members of Coimbatore chapter, Ravisundar, Sureshkumar and Dhandapani distributed the Zero Rupee Notes to all the 120 students, and a pledge was taken by all, to neither accept nor give bribe. After the speech the students had time to share their thoughts with the members of the 5th Pillar team and to get answers for the problems that their family or friends were encountering at present. It is interesting to hear views from these youngsters who had their share of experiences from traffic regulations to obtaining certificates for admissions.

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5th Pillar New Members Introductory meeting in Chennai on Sat, 17 April 2010

2010-04-14T14:03:00.000-04:00

All the new members who have joined 5th Pillar recently have been invited for an introductory meeting in Chennai. The meeting is on Sat 17th April, 2010 at Corporation School in Sastri Nagar, Adayar, Chennai.(full address and directions below).

The agenda of the meeting is-

1. WELCOME speech by Sarath Babu, Program Coordinator.

2. "5TH PILLAR UNTIL NOW" - Presentation(Slide show) and talk by Jarina Yasmin, ADAYAR Coordinator- the history, success stories, campaign results

3. Role of Exisiting Coordinators: Mr.Banu Kumar followed by Coordinators and active members in the organization(Jayaselvan, Adhi(Tuticorin), Sanjayakumar(Pallavaram), Natarajan(Tirunelveli), Santhanamoorthi(Cuddalore), etc.....

4. New Members Self Introduction- will share their background info, why they joined 5th Pillar, in what way they can get involved etc.

5. "WHAT CAN I DO?" - A. Subramani, Director-Operations will talk about the various committees and list out the various activities and how people can contrubute their time and efforts towards 5th Pillar's success.

6. "FREEDOM from CORRUPTION" talk by Vijay Anand, President of 5th Pillar.

7. Vote of Thanks- Srimathi Sridhar

Date : Saturday, 17th April, 2010, Time : 4 – 6 pm.

Venue : Corporation School, 11th Cross street, Sastri Nagar, Adayar, Chennai.

(Directions- From Adayar, take Lattice Bridge road; turn left on road leading to Beasant Nagar, just before the BSNL Telephone exchange. Take 3rd right and the school is on the left.)

Looking forward to see everyone that can make it to the meeting. Please feel free to bring friends and family who might be interested in 5th Pillar's cause and goal.

5th Pillar members of Tuticorin conduct awareness campaign at Tuticorin Collector's office

2010-04-13T01:43:00.001-04:00

Throngs of people visit the collector's office on Monday as it is the petition acceptance day of the week. Petitions are filed to protest, and so this is an ideal venue to create awareness for the people congregating here, and hence the members of our organization distributed the Zero Rupee Note and the RTI (Right to Information) pamphlet to all the visitors to create an awareness about 5th Pillar, an active advocate for citizens rights. People usually come to Collector's office on Monday to file their grievances in form of petition for deteriorating services and discrepancies, and hence by distributing the Zero Rupee Note and RTI information pamphlet we were armouring them to face the situation and get a solution for their impending issues. Volunteers of 5th Pillar took time to explain about paving way to solutions by filing RTI petitions, with relevant questions to expedite and yield favourable results. Tuticorin chapter of 5th Pillar have good rapport with honest officials in all government offices, and through their guidance help the people approaching our organization, to file the application for services in proper order, so that there will not be any delay in obtaining their benefits. Counselling of honest government officials to obtain services quickly and righteously is commendable.

5th Pillar's President addressed the Rotarians of Chennapatna on 8.04.2010 at Savera Hotel in Chennai

2010-04-12T23:31:00.000-04:00

Rotarians of Chennapatna invited 5^th Pillar's President, Mr. Vijay Anand to address their meet on 8^th April at Savera Hotel in Chennai. Mr. Anand spoke about Freedom from Corruption, and his detailed account of RTI petitions and Public litigations filed by our organization and other field activities highlighted the practical approach in tackling corruption. “Success stories of getting your rights without paying bribe using Zero Rupee Note and filing RTI petitions were possible”, said Mr. Anand. He said, “If we in 5^th Pillar can get this done, so can every other citizen in our country, so let us all conclude to stop paying bribe demanded as extra fee”. Volunteers of 5^th Pillar distributed the Zero Rupee Note to all the participants and they all took an oath to neither accept nor give bribe. Creating awareness and introducing the concept of resistance to bribe is the first step to eradicating this social evil.

Student Chapter of 5th Pillar, SAC at Vellore Institute of Technology organized an RTI training camp ON 7.04.2010

2010-04-12T20:14:00.001-04:00

Student chapter of 5th Pillar, SAC ( Students Against Corruption) at Vellore Institute of Technology had been very active propagandists of social issues and have conducted many programs this past year as listed below. Student coordinator of SAC at VIT, Mr. Jagdeeshkumar an Asst Prof of School of Science and Humanities has been a strong motivator for the students in organizing the following events.

29.09.2009 - Next is what?

A movie compilation event in association with movie club on the theme, "India in 2020". The duration of the movie was for 10 minutes.

30.10.2009 - Workshop on movie compilation in association with IEEE-WIE, VIT affinity group.

Nov 3-7, 2009 - Vigilance Awareness Week.

Wide publicity regarding, Central Vigilance Commissions(CVC) appeal to the public on

- complaints to be sent directly to CVC

- to fight corruption together

- to contribute to nation building

December 2009 - Membership mobilization campaign, and RTI (Right to Information) awareness events.

18.02.2010 - Committee selection for a social awareness club, who would be active advocates of bringing about a change in India, by making India corruption free thereby supporting Vision 2020, and become an ardent RTI activists.

24.02.2010 - Results of core committee selections declared.

1.04.2010 - Poetry Competition

On the spot poetry competition for the first time in VIT - language no bar- best poems were displayed on all notice boards - certificates issued to winners on 7.04.2010.

Active SAC members of Vellore Institute of Technology, invited 5th Pillar's President, Mr. Vijay Anand for a one day event organized at their institute on 7th April 2010, on the topic of Right to Information. Vice-chancellor of the Institute, Mr.Shekhar Viswanathan gave an inaugural speech on the take of student's interest for social causes, especially on the debilitating issue on hand, Corruption.

Mr. Vijay Anand spoke next on the topic of, "Freedom from Corruption", and his power-point presentation with the statistical ranking of India in the Corruption Index was an eye-opener to the extent of cleansing required. Video presentation developed by our organization highlighting the current sorry state of our nation in regard to corruption was very captive. His recount on the successes obtained by distributing the Zero Rupee Note and filing RTI petitions motivated the already fervent students. Director of operations of 5th Pillar, Mr. Subramani, spoke about RTI Act and its adoption to solve problems pertaining to acquiring our basic rights to services. He gave a detailed account on how to prepare an RTI petition for a real life scenario, with examples for better understanding. Ms.Shaazka Beyerle from the US who is a Senior Director of the Center for Non-violent conflict resolution, spoke on the International scenario on Corruption. Student's queries on corruption related issues were answered by Mr. Anand.

After the presentations, a panel discussion was organized, were 10 groups of 5 members each took part in an active discourse on the topic of RTI. The topic of discussion was national development and influence of Indian politics on RTI. Students had interesting, innovative ideas which portrayed their clear understanding of the compounding, debilitating problem in hand, corruption.

Why the private sector is excluded from RTI?

Why the Supreme Court Judges are exempt from declaring their assets?, are some of the thought provoking questions that were debated on this session. It is good to see future policy makers taking part in active debate on hindering aspects of the RTI Act.