You can’t eradicate corruption but you can only curb it, said Lokayukta Justice N Santosh Hegde to people, calling for a people’s movement against corruption.

He was speaking after inaugurating a conference on eradicating corruption in Karnataka, organised by the district Advocates’ Association here on Wednesday.

He called upon the people to boycott corrupt officials. He said, the citizens seems to be oblivious of their responsibilities in a Panchayat Raj system where actual power lies with the voters and hence they play a great role in crusade against corruption.

Each villager should be in a position to seek details of grants released to his gram panchayat and
allocations, progress in developmental works. If he realises that some misappropriation has taken place, he should inform lokayukta immediately. Such responsible citizens help a lot in curbing corruption, he added.
Public Audit System will be put in place in each village to check misappropriation of funds, he said. I
n each district a lokayukta SP office has been opened and it acts as bridge between the public and the Lokayukta. The public can directly meet the lokayukta officials without seeking help of the middlemen.

Raids
As many as 40 senior officers’ houses were raided in the last year. However, this year within 77 days 77 officials have been caught on charges of grafting, Mr Hegde said. Stating that number of grafting cases registered with lokayukta police is on high, he said 22,000 cases are yet to be discharged. As a part of creating awareness among the youth on curbing  corruption, he has delivered seminars in 72 schools, he said.

A round-the-clock helpline will be launched from March 25, the lokayukta justice said.

Through the helpline, complaints can be submitted to the lokayukta, even at night, against doctors refusing to give treatment in emergency cases at night; police who refuse to register complaints and other officials who refuse to discharge their duties.

The lokayukta official in charge will immediately warn the erring official and action will be taken soon, he said.

Register complaints
 While public can register complaints at night through phone and during day they can directly contact the lokayukta, he added.

District Sessions Judge Mohan Sripad Sankolli, Judges Ashok Banasode, L R Khurane and H B Khadripati, former legislator K N Subbareddy, District Advocates’ Association President K H Tammegowda, Secretary Prakash and advocate P Subramanya were present on the occasion.