Kashmir Observer: Srinagar: Friday, May 26, 2017.
Central
University of Kashmir (CUK) Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Mehraj ud Din Mir today said
the Right to Information Act (RTI) was a landmark legislation that made all the
government institutions accountable to the masses.
“This act has
created a sense of responsibility and accountability among the key
functionaries of the government departments and other institutions, which come
under its (RTI Act’s) purview,” Prof. Mehraj ud Din Mir said, while inaugurating
an awareness workshop on RTI Act organised by the Directorate of Students
Welfare for the administrative staff and students of the varsity at Nowgam-II
academic block here.
Registrar,
Prof. M Afzal Zargar, Finance Officer, Mr. Bashir Ahmad Haji, Head Department
of Religious Studies, Prof. Hameed Naseem Rafiabadi, Dean Students Welfare, Dr.
Fayaz A Nikka, Program coordinator CHRI, Mr. Venkatesh Nayek, programme officer
CHRI, Ms Shikha Chibbar, Chairman J&K RTI movement and Tosamaidan Bachav
Front, Dr. Shaikh Ghulam Rasool, faculty members, administrative head and
students were also present during the programme.
Prof. Mehraj
ud Din Mir said the RTI has kept the decisions taken by any of the government
officials with regard to recruitment process, purchases, allotment of works and
other similar activities open to any scrutiny. “There have been several
instances wherein the purchase orders, allotment of works and recruitment
processes have been quashed after RTI revealed discrepancies in the procedures
adopted for the same,” he said, adding that the RTI has also unearthed several
scams in many states. Prof. Mehraj ud Din Mir said the Act has been highly
beneficial to the people.
Registrar,
Prof. M Afzal Zargar while speaking on the occasion, said the Act has played a
significant and crucial role in bringing transparency and accountability in the
government institutions. “Many revelations have come to the fore after the RTI
Act was implemented in the country,” he said. He however added that the Act
should not be misused, as there have been several instances and complaints
wherein certain RTI activists have allegedly harassed the government officials.
Dean Students
Welfare, Dr. Fayaz A Nikka, while welcoming the experts said the main aim and
objective of holding the awareness programme was to sensitize the
administrative staff and the students about the Act. He said the DSW would hold
more such sensitization programmes in near future so that the students would be
well acquainted with the usage of RTI Act.
Later in the
technical session, Mr. Venkatesh Nayek made a detailed power point presentation
on "Procedures for seeking information under RTI" while as Ms Shikha
Chibbar deliberated upon “Using RTI for crime related research." Dr.
Shaikh Ghulam Rasool discussed the topic, "RTI movement in Jammu and
Kashmir and success stories of RTI."