Not just for a job but people also pay (or made to pay) high price to get 'transfers'. If you a are govt. school teacher or doctor you'll likely be posted at a place which is very far from your residence just so that you'll be ready to pay a hefty sum to get transferred to a nearby location.
That's even more sinister than what I had thought. So you could take two job openings in two towns and two good candidates in those two towns and get 2x the bribe just by doing the inefficient thing and sending them to the wrong post.
Now these two people are out a lot of money and in their mind they have to recoup that money somehow and the cycle of bribes continues. :/
> just by doing the inefficient thing and sending them to the wrong post.
Not the case most of the times. In each recruitment process, a central list is created based on test score and other criteria.
And candidates give choices. Most want to live in megacities like Chennai or Kolkata. Many want to be close to their homes.
Choices are awarded (or disregarded) first-come-first-serve basis on that merit list.
A few get desired postings due to their scores. Most of them end up in godforsaken places where your future children will get shitty schools and a worse environment. And very bad healthcare facilities.
So these people are eager to shell out a lot of money to get desired posting.
Indian companies and government institutions always had unions. Most of them leftist, and many apolitical (in white collar places, obviously). Nowadays unions are hijacked overnight by whichever party comes to power.
They work as a center of power. And they are the intermediaries in corruption.
Most unions have stopped caring about their ideals, and the people. They are just power brokers hungry for the fulfilment of the few.
This is how corruption becomes universal in India. There are taxicab unions, actors' unions, teachers' unions, farm-workers' union- all rules over by the ruling party. They don't give a rat's ass about the members.
They just care about a few. And they can stay in power because they are supported by the ruling party and give them huge cuts.
