A photograph related to the event.
New Delhi, April 28, 2015: “On behalf of the Central Bureau of Investigation and on my own behalf, I welcome you all to the 16th DP Kohli Annual Memorial Lecture.
It is indeed an honour to have amidst us as Chief Guest Shri Arun Jaitley, a lawyer par excellence and a parliamentarian and leader of great eminence. We are grateful to you, Sir, for having graciously consented to be the Chief Guest in spite of your pressing parliamentary commitments and ministerial responsibilities. Your succinct views in Parliamentary debates, blogs and writings are enriched with original thoughts and resonate deeply with the people of India. Sir, today you are eminently placed to give shape and direction to many a law and policy that will define the direction of the country in the coming decades. The entire CBI family extends a very warm welcome to you.
It is my distinct privilege to welcome the Guest of Honour and our Minister of State, Dr. Jitendra Singh. Sir, you are always a source of great support to the Organization and I thank you for having spared your very valuable time.
I also acknowledge the esteemed presence of Comptroller and Auditor General of India Shri Shashikant Sharma, Central Vigilance Commissioner Shri Rajiv & Secretary (Personnel) Shri Sanjay Kothari. Thank you so much Sirs for accepting our invitation and gracing the occasion.
I welcome all our former Directors whose guidance and continued support have contributed to building of this institution.
I would also like to express my gratitude to our distinguished guests from the Government and foreign Law Enforcement agencies who are here. Our guests today also include CMDs and CVOs of Banks and representatives from Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). We welcome them with the sentiment that they play a crucial role in creating wealth and jobs so vital for the nation.
Ladies and Gentlemen, this lecture series has been instituted for a worthy purpose. Through this, we express our sincere gratitude and pay homage to our founder Director, late Shri D.P. Kohli, a great institution builder. He led the organization during the formative period providing exemplary and visionary leadership. CBI’s motto - Industry, Impartiality and Integrity - the three pillars that continue to stand us good for the past half a century, was coined by him. Apart from the lecture, today’s function would also include presentation of police medals and CBI awards to outstanding achievers. My heartiest congratulations to all the awardees and their family members.
Ladies and gentlemen, the topic chosen by Hon’ble Finance Minister for today’s lecture is an insightful subject that reflects the mood of the nation. Never in the past has there been so much hope and expectations about the future of India as at present. Recently, the Government of India has launched major reforms and initiatives in the form of a Single Goods & Service Tax, bank account for every citizen under the Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana, broad-band connectivity to all villages of the country by 2016 and the ‘Make in India’ campaign. India is poised for a resurgence that will in the foreseeable future transform it into a more developed economy with stronger linkages to major economies of the world. There will be greater movement of funds, people, goods & services across geographical boundaries bringing in far-reaching social and economic changes.
As an inevitable corollary, the changes brought about by economic growth are also going to throw up new challenges for law enforcement agencies. For the CBI, crimes are likely to become more innovative, complex, driven increasingly by technology and transcending geographical boundaries. Corruption is likely to remain a major impediment to growth. In 2014, India ranked 85 amongst 178 countries in the Corruption Perception Index. As per RBI data, the non-performing assets of banks have grown from around 50,000 crores in 2007 to Rs. 2.45 lakh crores in 2014. Over 80,000 crores of public money pertaining to roughly six crores citizens is locked up in Ponzi schemes being investigated by CBI. All these challenges will require a quantum leap in capacity of the CBI. In anticipation, we have proactively undertaken an exercise during the last few months and have drawn a road map for the future.
I would briefly outline the new initiatives that are expected to substantially upgrade our investigation and prosecution capacity. Over a period of three years, 555 CBI officers shall be trained in investigation of financial crimes and other new and emerging crimes in partnership with IIM, Bangalore and National Law School. I would like to thank the Secretary (Personnel) for taking keen interest in giving shape to this initiative.
We have also proposed to the government to set up an International Centre of Excellence in Investigation at CBI Academy to train not only CBI and other State and Central officers but also officers from ASEAN and SAARC countries.
In order to leverage cutting edge technology into our investigations, we have proposed setting up a Centralized Technology Vertical (CTV-CBI) to provide real-time support to investigations.
Sir, we thank you for blessing these two initiatives by placing them in the Budget for 2015-16. We would seek your continued support to fructify these initiatives in the near future.
Sir, presently only 5-6% of investigations make use of forensic tools and technologies. The range and quality of available forensic support does not meet the best international standards. The gap manifests in weak investigation and adversely impacts delivery of justice to the victims. We have, therefore, proposed to the MHA to set up a first of its kind state-of-the-art Forensic Science Lab in the country at the CBI Academy campus which would also include emerging and futuristic forensic disciplines like Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear (CBRN) Forensics, Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) etc, all under one roof. The Union Home Secretary is already seized of the proposal and I would urge him to accord it highest priority so that this lab can become a reality very soon.
Ladies and gentlemen, enhancement of economic worth is a legitimate aspiration of citizens in a democratic polity. However, no developing society can afford to allow its growth initiative to get impeded by fraud, deceit and rent seeking behaviour. For order to help create and maintain an environment conducive for growth, CBI remains unwavering in its commitment to fight deviance, criminality and corruption lest these derail our national developmental programs. It would be appropriate at this point to briefly touch upon the role of regulators and law enforcement agencies in an economically resurgent India. At times, there is a tendency amongst various stakeholders to place the regulators in an adversarial position with the policy makers and corporate sector. We need to revisit the contours of this discourse and have the right public conversation which equally recognises the need for growth and the Constitutional obligation to secure justice for all. While some of the laws may need to be amended with time, but such changes need to be progressive, based on best practices of successful democratic economies and measure up to the expectations of an increasingly assertive citizenry.
Ladies and Gentlemen, with his immense knowledge, experience and insight, it will be indeed valuable to learn from our Union Finance Minister, the varied economic challenges that confront us even as we accelerate towards a new prosperous India. I am sure the Memorial Lecture today would provide a fresh perspective and ideas for thought-leaders, policy-makers and other stakeholders.
Once again, I extend a very warm welcome to all guests for gracing the occasion. I now invite the Chief Guest, Sh. Arun Jaitley and MoS (Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions), Dr. Jitendra Singh to give away the medals and awards.”
(The event was held on April 27, 2015 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi ) / (SK Vyas, Jalandhar)
Date:
Tuesday, April 28, 2015