‘Info sought in 98% RTI queries has to be disclosed proactively’

DNA: AHMEDABAD: Sunday, May 12, 2013.

Says an NGO, adds 41% cases go to GIC as first appellate authority violates norms.

Forty-one percent of the total appeals and complaints that landed before Gujarat Information Commission were because the First Appellate Authority (FAA) violated norms of the Right to Information (RTI) Act. Had the FAA responded to the query, it would not have reached the commission. This was revealed by NGO Mahiti Adhikar Gujarat Pahel (MAGP) at a press conference in the city.

Out of the 30,491 complaints and appeals received by the commission from 2005 to 2011, in 28% of the cases the public information officer (PIO) did not comply with the order of FAA to reveal the information, while in 25.6% the PIO ignored the order of the commission as well.

Pankti Jog of MAGP said that it has been eight years since the RTI came into force. “So far, 7.5 crore RTI applications have been made across Gujarat. Of these, 98% related to implementation of schemes, use of funds in such schemes, allocation of funds among others, information on which has to be disclosed proactively,” said Jog. This meant that most of the information sought by RTI applicants comes under proactive disclosure.

“Under section 4 (1)(b) of the RTI Act, the government is to proactively disclose various information related to its work. For example, in the PDS system each ration shop should have in writing details like the entitlements that BPL families have and the rate at which the ration is given among others. But such proactive disclosures don’t happen on the side of the government, as a result of which people have to file query under RTI,” said Jog.

Another RTI activist, Harinesh Pandya, too said that such disclosure will also go a long way in preventing attacks on RTI activists and also help counter any attempts by people to blackmail government officials using RTI.

“There has been an allegation that RTI is being used as a tool to blackmail government officials. On the other hand many activists who try to get information find themselves threatened. Both the situations will be solved immediately if the contentious information is made public,” said Pandya.