From getting a birth certificate to opening a business venture, India’s record in clearing red tape continues to be poor, hurting the country’s progress. Survey results

An overwhelming 81 per cent of respondents taking part in a nationwide survey said they found standards of governance in the country falling short of their expectations.

Fifty-nine per cent blamed politicians, while 30 per cent held bureaucrats responsible for poor governance and 67 per cent said either they or their relatives had paid bribe to get work done at a government department.

The survey, which came in the run-up to the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit, covered more than 2,000 respondents spread across 10 major Indian cities.

Poor governance, the respondents said, was coming in the way of building infrastructure to fuel rapid economic growth and affected the quality education and health that is vital to turn our youth bulge into a demographic dividend.

About 73 per cent of the respondents blamed bureaucratic red tape and political interference for tardy progress on the infrastructure front, while only 27 per cent thought finding money for new projects was difficult.

A majority of respondents want the government to boost spending on education and health, with a focus on teacher training, universal immunisation and essential medication.