Bhubaneswar, Jan. 6: Central vigilance commissioner K.V. Chowdary today said the central agency was in touch with industrial bodies, including the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) and Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham), to curb corruption in private sector and called for more overall vigilance.

Chowdary, who delivered the keynote address on the 15th Nalco Foundation Day Lecture Series, said: "Though corruption is prevalent in government offices and public sector, the private sector is also not free from it. We can reduce the level of corruption by becoming more vigilant."

He stressed on the importance of character building from childhood as the key to a strong nation.

"A nation can be built only through character building," he said.

In a metaphor-laden address, Chowdary cited the example of a mother protecting her child when it is about to touch a lamp, and said a similar attitude should be adopted at organisational level to dissuade people from indulging in corrupt practices.

"We should not always follow the principle of punitive action to check corruption. Punitive action is subservient to preventive vigilance. Corruption can be checked only through awareness," he said.

The central vigilance commissioner said corruption could be minimised if the procedures of work were simplified. "Too much procedure leads to complications," he added.

Pointing out the reasons for rising corruption, he said there were higher chances of misuse of power where there was scope for discretionary use that at times led to corruption.

"Every organisation needs develop a robust mechanism and work towards developing a feed back system. If the feed back system of an organisation is good, it will certainly help the organisation to curb corruption," he said.

The central vigilance commissioner said steps should be taken to minimise the number of contact points to reduce corruption.

"Earlier, we had followed the physical tender process. Now we have moved to e-tender process. This has reduced the number of contact points. Such practices should be followed at every level," he said.

Chowdary also batted for the need to build a robust system.

"We have to follow the standard operating procedure to make the system work. If a system works, the level of corruption can be checked," he said.

Nalco chairman-cum-managing director Tapan Kumar Chand said: "Good governance is the key to Nalco's success. We are committed to keeping the organisation corruption free."