Times
of India: Bareilly: Wednesday, 28 January 2015.
An RTI
activist who sought information on the freedom struggle in India from 1857
onwards received a letter from the National Archives, telling him the details
could not be provided since the records needed were in Urdu and the papers were
in poor shape!
The RTI
activist said the answer was surprising, and raised questions about the ability
of the National Archives to preserve records of freedom fighters.
In his plea
filed in October last year, Moradabad-based RTI activist Salim Baig sought
details of people who contributed to India's freedom struggle between 1857 and
1947. His query was transferred to the National Archives, which replied that it
was unable to provide him the information since records were in Urdu and in
such poor shape that even a duplicate copy could not be provided.
Talking to
TOI, Baig said, "It is shocking that the government has failed to maintain
records pertaining to our freedom movement."
Maintaining
that there is no reason National Archives could not preserve the country's
historical documents with all the advanced technologies that it has, Baig
alleged it could either be because of grave negligence on the part of a few
officials or "a deliberate attempt" to tamper with records.
The RTI
activist also alleged that the National Archives' reply is a violation of the
RTI Act. "As per section 4(b) of RTI Act, all departments should upload
their data on their websites within 120 days of the enactment of this Act.
However, even after nearly a decade of the legislation, I have received a reply
stating the National Archives' inability to preserve data," Baig said.
Baig added
that if all departments put their data online, the number of RTI pleas filed
across the country would be drastically reduced.
Baig also
raised a query, in the same RTI plea, about the number of freedom fighters
alive. He was told that around 38,000 freedom fighters/eligible dependents draw
monthly benefits under the Central Samman pension scheme.
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