DNA: Mumbai: Thursday, February 02, 2017.
Soon,
residents of Mumbai, as well as Maharashtra, will be able to see just how much
money their local representatives are spending on their constituencies, the
kind of work on which the money is being spent, and the areas in which it is
being spent, with just a click of a mouse. Additionally, they will be able to
know the reasons for selecting a particular area for a project and the reasons
for the project, as the letter written by the elected representatives for
disbursal of MP and MLA funds will also be available online.
All of this
will be facilitated by an order of the state information commission (SIC)
directing all Collector offices in Mumbai and the state to post updated monthly
details of MLA and MP funds.
The order was
passed by the SIC after the Collector's office failed to upload the details.
The order dated January 30 was passed by state chief information commissioner
Ratnakar Gaikwad on a complaint filed by Bhaskar Prabhu. The information to be
uploaded on the websites of respective Collectors' offices will include the
places and works for which the money is to be used, letters written by elected
representatives for disbursal of the money, details of the amount sanctioned,
tender details, contract details, and details of money disbursed, progress of
work, and other details related to the funds they receive.
Prabhu, in
his complaint, stated that the collector's office had not updated information
since 2015. The information posted online seemed to be suspicious, as all the
money approved for all works of MLAs and MPs funds was uniform, at Rs 2.99
lakhs. This was posted only on the city collector's website, while the websites
of other collector offices did not even post any information.
Prabhu had
sought details to conduct a 'social audit' of works that can be carried out by
citizens under section 2 (j) the RTI Act. His organisation has been conducting
social audits of money spent, materials used and outcome of works undertaken on
the city's municipal gardens. "The order is to be appreciated. It is the
beginning of a transparent system wherein one can get information that people
want at one place," he said.