Transparency International India and LocalCircles to Launch Online and Mobile based Anti-Corruption Citizen Communities for All Districts of India
National circle to enable citizens to submit collective inputs on various subjects to CAG , CVC , CBI and other anti-corruption agencies
District level circles to enable citizens to come together to fight corruption and exchange information
Initiative aimed at reducing corruption in Civil Society, Business & Government through collective action
First of its kind online national and local anti-corruption community networks in the world
New Delhi, India, May 2, 2015 – Transparency International India, the India Chapter of Transparency International a global civil society organization leading the fight against corruption and LocalCircles, India’s leading community social media network, is initiating online and mobile based citizen communities in India to fight corruption
These citizen communities, accessible online and via mobile phones will be at both, national and district levels in India, enabling citizens of India to create awareness about corruption, give inputs on various aspects of corruption experienced by them and actively participate in the change process of reducing corruption in India.
The national anti-corruption community will be utilized to seek citizen views on various types of corruption in India, submit collective whitepapers to Central Vigilance Commission (CVC), Central Bureau of Investigation(CBI) and other investigation agencies.
The Local district level communities will facilitate citizen exchange on how to get work done without corruption in their area with local bodies like municipality, panchayat, property registration office, transport, water and other Government departments. At a later date, the state level Lokayuktas or Anti-Corruption bureaus may be directly invited to join the LocalCircles.
“This community is a classic example of technology and community coming together for a good cause and LocalCircles is pleased to be the enabling platform”, said Sachin Taparia, Chairman & CEO, Local Circles. “With the LocalCircles mobile app, any citizen will be able to report corruption on finger tips and seek inputs from others in their district on how to get a particular work done without paying a bribe”, continued Taparia.
“Transparency International India is committed to the cause of reducing corruption in India and in today’s age there is no better way than technology to create awareness about corruption and fight it”, said P. S. Bawa, chairman, Transparency International India.
“Transparency International India through this partnership is looking at making Fighting Corruption, a civil society movement in India and will leverage its expertise and network in India to enable citizens to collectively act against corruption”, said Ashutosh Kr. Mishra ED TII.
“This initiative will help in strengthening of our present Advocacy and Legal Advice (ALAC) program of India opined”, Rama Nath Jha Director (ALAC) of TII. All who care about building a Corruption Free India are invited to join the National Circle called “Fighting Corruption Together” by visiting http://tinyurl.com/Fight-Corruption-Together. Once someone joins the National Circle, they will automatically be given access to their district’s Anti-Corruption circle as it becomes available.
About LocalCircles
LocalCircles takes Social Media to the next level and makes it about Communities, Governance and Utility. It enables citizens to connect with communities for most aspects of urban daily life like Neighbourhood, Constituency, City, Government, Causes, Interests and Needs, seek information/assistance when needed, come together for various initiatives and improve their urban daily life. LocalCircles is free for citizens and always will be!
About Transparency International India
Transparency International India (TII) is the accredited India chapter of Transparency International, an international civil society organisation based at Berlin that has turned the fight against corruption into a worldwide movement. TII is part of the Asia Pacific forum comprising 20 nations that include China, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Maldives and others. TII is a non-government, non-party and not-for-profit organisation of Indian citizens with professional, social, industrial or academic experience seeking to promote transparent and ethical governance and to eradicate corruption.
