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THE Right to Information Act (RTIA), which has come into force from October 12, 2005 is a significant development since Independence because the people can now exercise their right to know from the government. All that they need to do is just fill in a form to know about, say, the status of a ration card, a passport application or employment guarantee programme in their village. RTIA would remove veils of secrecy from the functioning of the government. It would empower people by providing them information about working of public authorities; armed with this information they can fight with the concerned authorities for their rights. People should come forward to make best use of the Act. This will not only help them to have greater say in the day-to-day governance but also make the officials accountable for their acts of omission and commission. RTIA in the long run can be a tool to fight corruption and promote transparency and accountability in the working of any public authority. If implemented properly, the RTIA, 2005 could lead the country towards true participatory democratic governance. RTIA would act an instrument for improving government-citizen interfacing, resulting in caring and effective governance. Salient features of India's RTI Act, 2005 |
1. RTI Act 2005 empowers every citizen to: • Ask any questions from the Government or seek
any information |
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2. You
can seek information from any department of the central
or state government, from panchayati raj institutions,
and from any other organization or institution (including
NGOs) that is established, constituted, owned, controlled
or substantially financed, directly or indirectly, by
the state or central government (section 2(a) &
(h)).
3. In each department, at least one officer has been designated as a public information officer (PIO). He/She accepts the request forms and provides information sought by the people (section 5(1)). 4. In addition, in each sub-district/divisional level there are assistant public information officers (APIOs) who receive requests for information and appeals against decisions of the public information officers, and then send them to the appropriate authorities (section 5(2)). 5. Any person seeking information should file an application in writing or through electronic means in English or Hindi (or in the official language of the area) along with the application fees with the PIO/APIO (section 6(1)). 6. Where a request cannot be made in writing, the PIO is supposed to render all reasonable assistance to the person making the request orally to reduce the same in writing (section 6(1)). 7. Where the applicant is deaf, blind, or otherwise impaired, the public authority is supposed to provide assistance to enable access to the information, including providing such assistance as may be appropriate for the inspection (section 7(4)). 8. Besides the applicant's contact details, the applicant is not required to either give any reasons for requesting the information or any other personal details (section 6(2)). 9. A reasonable application fee (Rs
10/- as prescribed by the Central Government, whereas
in other states the fee amount may vary. [Refer to Annexure
2(fee rules chart) on page……..] will be charged for
each application and supply of information. However,
no fee is chargeable from persons below the poverty
line (section 7(5)), or if the information is provided
after the prescribed period (section 7(6)). |
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11. If the PIO feels that the sought information does not pertain to his organization then it shall be his responsibility to forward the application to the related/relevant organization within 5 days and also inform the applicant about the same. In such instance, the stipulated time limit for provision of information would be 35 days (u/s 6(3)).
12. In case PIO does not furnish information within the prescribed period or unreasonably troubles the applicant, then the applicant can file a complaint against him with the information commission.
13. In case a PIO without any reasonable cause fails to receive an application for information, malafidely denies a request for information, or knowingly gives incorrect, incomplete or misleading information, or asks for high fees for furnishing the information the applicant can file a direct complaint to the Central or the State Information Commission.
14. The PIO can deny information in some cases/matters. The various exemptions from disclosure of information are listed in Sections 8 and 9 of the RTI Act, 2005.
15. If the sought information is in public interest then the exemptions enumerated in Section 8 of the RTI Act, 2005 can also be disclosed.
16. Any information that cannot be denied to parliament or legislative assembly cannot be denied to a common citizen.
17. In case a person fails to get a response from the PIO within the prescribed period or is aggrieved by the response received, or misuses Section 8 of the Act, then he/she canfile an appeal within 30 days with an officer superior in rank to the PIO( first appellate authority) (section 19(1)).
18. If the appellant is not satisfied with the 1st appeal then he/she can file a 2nd appeal with the State Information Commission or the Central Information Commission within 60 days (u/s 19(3).
19. If a PIO fails to furnish the information asked for under the Act or fails to communicate the rejection order, within the time specified, the PIO will be liable to pay a penalty of Rs 250 per day for each day of delay, subject to a maximum of Rs 25,000 (section 20(1)). The information commission can also recommend disciplinary action against the concerned PIO, under the service rules applicable to him/her (section 20(2)).
SSK's initiatives.....
One-day orientation workshop on Right to information (RTI) was organised in the following degree colleges
Mahatma Gandhi Gramodaya
Vishwavidhyalaya, Chitrakoot on 13th September 2007,
Chandrakala Inter college, Mirzapur on 18th September
2007. One-day orientation workshop on Right to information
(RTI) was organised for degree college students in
Sitapur. The workshop was organised in three degree
colleges namely Hindu Kanya Mahavidhyalaya, Sacred
Heart Degree College and Government Degree College
on 28.09.2007 and 03.10.2007 respectively. The aim
of these orientation workshop was to orient the students
on the importance and utility of the RTI Act. The
students were explained the provisions of the Act
and procedure to file an application under the same. |
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Copyright
© : Sahbhagi Shikshan Kendra, Lucknow
