First for city: MCD puts RTI forms online

Indian Express, New Delhi :Tue Jun 28 2011

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi, which is among the public agencies that receive the maximum number of RTI applications, has become first public agency in the Capital to make the filing of applications online.

All an applicant needs is a credit card to pay the application fee of Rs 11 (Rs 26 for Delhi RTI). For persons Below Poverty Line (BPL), the uploading of application is free. The online process will provide an alternative to sending the application by post or handing the application in person to the Public Information Officer in the MCD.

“The application form was uploaded on the website last week and we have already received more than 60 online applications. We plan to put maximum services online,” said Deep Mathur, MCD spokesperson. He described the initiative as a step towards the agency’s comprehensive e-governance plan.

On MCD’s website, www.mcdonline.gov.in, the civic agency has introduced a tab called ‘Online RTI’, which takes the user to a fresh webpage that includes all information pertaining to the RTI — filing application, status and rules.

A click on the ‘Application Submission’ tab leads the user to an application form. The applicant needs to fill in the department the query is addressed to and other essential information such as name, address, phone number, etc. The form also asks for an e-mail id of the applicant, so the system can revert the application reference number for future communication with the MCD.

While BPL persons need to fill in only their BPL card number, other applicants are charged Rs 10 for submitting an application in ‘RTI’ category and Rs 25 in ‘Delhi RTI’ category. A ‘convenience fee’ of 2 per cent, which is rounded off to the nearest sum, is added to the total fee.

After filling in the query, there can be more than one question for a department, the webpage leads to a payment gateway. An auto-generated receipt is sent on the mail-id and the MCD corresponds with the applicant on the e-mail id provided in the form.

Praising the move, Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi told Newsline: “This is a progressive step and I appreciate the municipal body’s intention to make it easier for the applicant. I hope others would follow and use technology to make things convenient and simpler for accessing information.”