Good HR Associates,
It is an interesting post! And I am really happy to see you 'fight' it out. You might single yourself out in the end, but it would definitely be worth it. Anything done to curb corruption is welcome.
And if you think this can be supported, well, let us know. We will try in our best way.
I feel the root of this issue lies elsewhere... and that is the lack of respect for education. Our development paradigm went a little off-track to begin with. And the 'second best' alternative along with corrupt politicians has taken the country to dogs. Corruption would thrive only if there is support at the top. A nonchalant government is a perfect 'stimulus' package for corruption. And although we have had great ministers, the subtle compromise of choices and quality reached a critical mass and that has snowballed now into the huge rackets of corruption. One sees this point being raised time and again... HR being an 'everybodys zone'... In other words, we have degraded our systems to the extent that we don't know what the value of education should be. Most engineers in our country are not even close to all the areas of engineering. In fact, the fly-by-night engineering schools have made it possible to lower the entry barriers, but have not helped ensure the high quality required of the product. Moreover, from a demand perspective (of engineering graduates), the focus of our market has always been to 'run the show' rather than to 'create the show'. Its like comparing between making a new car and driving or maintaining the car... Obviously a driver / mechanic needs very different and select skills. You do that a little too often, and you enter into a loop... Thats happening now.
Now this is a vicious circle... the lack of respect is due to the surplus supply, something that comes due to excessive population. Anyone is fond of having a highly qualified individual for peanuts... The human resource department seldom says that we don't need a graduate, but even a 12th std. student would perform well in a job. This is where they are not understanding the value of education themselves... Moreover, the fly-by-night schools that are springing up in the country are only worsening the scenario... They are abusing education further! Just see it for yourself... You see posts in the Ascent that almost always call for graduates, while those in the Gulf rarely insist on graduates (largely diploma).
Our governance model is largely 'imported' and this is a huge cause of concern. It is a case of an inappropriate management system. Worked for the British, but might not be the best here. And our essential system is based on distrust rather than trust... If the reservation window takes too long at the railways station, people say he is not doing his work well, or even that he might be from the 'elevated' categories... Our model makes us run down our own people. This is another problem because our performance appraisal criteria is often skewed. Moreover the distrust model actually calls for a great deal of political skills rather than professional skills (if one can differentiate between the two).
Given this scenario, I feel that corruption is a secondary symptom... Its like treating the fever instead of the TB... Anna Hazare is trying to use corruption to try and siphon out the dirt in the system... After all, its easy to trace a problem through a symptom rather than trying to fight it out directly.
All said, I will still stand by you when in need. But I feel we should have the right expectations... First class men recruit first class men... Second class men recruit third class men... And if that is happening more frequently, you might not be able to reach back the first class position (especially when it is over a generation!)...
Lastly, true the HR has had a significant role to play... I agree with you that the basic screening point of people (input check) is failing. And if there is corruption in the corporate, I would put it fairly and squarely on the HR, for their attitude has led to this situation. Their performance criteria should address this issue. Afterall, its a HR issue and not a mere corporate philosophy... It is indeed a pity!