National RTI meet in city

Times of India: Hyderabad: Wednesday, February 13, 2013.

The controversial appointments of four information commissioners is one of the many topics that will be discussed at the upcoming national RTI (Right to Information) convention scheduled to be held in the city this week. Themed 'Transparency to accountability', the convention will be attended by 400 RTI activists from across the country, who will be discussing an array of issues affecting the Act. The convention is being organised by the National Campaign for People's Right to Information (NCPRI) and United Forum for RTI Campaign (UF-RTI).

"We will talk about the impact of the Act on citizens and the problems faced by them while using the Act. Whether the government is transparent and providing the required information will be discussed next," said Nikhil Dey, co-convenor of the NCPRI. Discussions will also be held on the role of information commissioners and whether they are hearing cases and levying penalties." he said. Dey also said that the Act on the whole would be examined to see if it needs any changes. "We will also conduct social audits and discuss how these can be brought into every sphere of the government," he added.

Speaking further on the whole process of selection of information commissioners, Dey said that changes were made to their recommendation and instead of the chief justice, a cabinet minister was included in the selection committee. The convention will have a total of 10 sessions spread over two days. On the third day, a public meeting will be held.tnn "The state has seen some positive developments related to the Act. Keeping aside some issues, the state government is supporting the implementation of the Act," B Ramakrishna Raju, convenor of the UF-RTI, said.