The towel on the chair: How it became India's ultimate status symbol

A towel-covered office chair once belonged to Sunil ji, a government employee who, despite having the lowest basic pay, was at the top of arranged marriage markets. He wore a safari suit and had a stern demeanor at family weddings. When his wife brought up issues regarding their salary account, they discovered that he hadn't received his salary for over two years due to a clerical error.

This revelation left Sunil ji's family impressed, as India, throughout much of its modern history, had faced a shortage of jobs, college seats, telephones, gas cylinders, and even good cricket players. After British rule, India struggled with bureaucracy, Pakistan, and severe scarcity. The Collectorate, a group of bureaucrats tasked with collecting revenues for the British overlords, grew in power and became susceptible to corruption due to their discretionary powers and lack of accountability.

Corruption in India is deeply embedded and often linked to identity politics, where emotions often mask the underlying issues. To eradicate corruption, the system must make it high-risk and low-reward, with high salaries and a 99% conviction rate for the Economic Intelligence Department.