India less corrupt than China, says Transparency International

New Delhi: According to Germany-based corruption watchdog Transparency International, India ranks less corrupt than China on its corruption index. 

According to the Corruption Perceptions Index of 2014 released by the watchdog, India moved up 10 places to rank 85 out of 175 countries. China dropped 20 places to rank at 100.

It is the first time in 18 years than India ranks below China on the corruption index.

The Germany-based corruption surveyed countries based on expert opinion from around the world.

The Corruption Perceptions Index measures the perceived levels of public sector corruption worldwide, and it paints an alarming picture. 

The watchdog said that not one single country gets a perfect score and more than two-thirds score below 50, on a scale from 0 to 100, 0 being highly corrupt and 100 being very clean. 

It added that a poor score is likely a sign of widespread bribery, lack of punishment for corruption and public institutions that don’t respond to citizens’ needs. Countries at the top of the index also need to act.

Leading financial centres in the EU and US need to join with fast-growing economies to stop the corrupt from getting away with it. The G20 needs to prove its global leadership role and prevent money laundering and stop secret companies from masking corruption.

A country or territory's rank indicates its position relative to the other countries and territories in the index.

Denmark ranks first followed by New Zealand and Finland. Although India has jumped 10 places to rank 185 but still it has a long way to go to join the least corrupt countries like Denmark, New Zealand and Finland.