896. Bribe, the menace.....!

This is a real incidence that occurred a few years back in north Karnataka. One morning at around 5 A.M on N H 218 a middle aged person riding a bike collapse and fell on the road side. It happened near a sugarcane field and a person who had been in the field to switch on the pump set rushed to the bikers’ aid. But by the time he reached there the person on the bike was no more. He had a massive heart attack. 

At about 9 A.M he was identified as R.T.O inspector who was on night duty. He was returning back home. The family of the officer was informed. While his bike was checked by the police for any foul play, in the stud box of the vehicle was Rs. 19,850=00 in cash with denomination from ranging from 10 to 500. That was the bribe amount he had collected throughout the night and was taking it home. No one knew since when he had been doing it but it was unfortunate that on that fateful day he could not even buy himself a single cup of tea in the morning with that money. 

As an irony the sugarcane grower who had rushed to help the person had lost his father only a week back. The farmer had committed suicide unable to repay the loan of Rs. 2,00,000=00 which he had taken from a co-operative bank to grow sugarcane. The amount the officer had collected overnight if aggregated for 10 to 12 nights would have been enough for the farmer to repay his loan. Unable to arrange the loan amount the farmer decided to end his life.  

The R.T.O inspector could have never thought that he will have to end his life journey so he was busy collecting lots of money. The thought that a person will live long and he has to amass lots of money to live a comfortable life is the wonder of wonders. We greet every sunrise with happiness, excited at the possibilities each fresh day brings. And at sunset too, we are happy at the opportunities for revelry in the pleasures of the night. Little do we realize that each sunrise and sunset gets us closer to the inevitable death. Only if we are aware of this simple fact, do we realize that there is no charm in amassing money and living a corrupt life? The lack of such knowledge has made the bureaucrats to suck money from the public in the name of rules. The politicians too milk money out of treasury in the name of development and the business companies loot the customer in the name of brand. Even so if the intentions are to make money, is there no limit? What would a family do with thousands of crores of rupees when it cannot save any one of their family members from the jaws of death???

For the last few days we have been noticing a few who have made money misappropriate to their earnings are discarding them. Fear of being caught has gripped them now. Were they not caught by their conscience when they amassed it??? Do they need moral policing??? Do they not revere their inner voice???

I always say this “You may get more than you desire, but you never get less than you deserve..... So just do your work sincerely without much worry about the gains”