Builder, 6 SRA officials booked after man alleges land grab in Goregaon

Times of India: Mumbai: Saturday, 28 February 2015.

A developer, six officials of the Slum Rehabiliation Authority (SRA) and three others have been booked by the Vanrai police in a case of cheating and forgery. The complainant, Umesh Patel, 63, had approached a magistrate court at Borivali stating that an attempt was being made to grab his property located at Goregaon East. On the directions of the court, the police lodged an FIR. A detailed probe will be conducted before making any arrests, police said.

Patel, a Juhu resident, owned around 15986 sq metres of land at Hanuman Tekdi in Goregaon. According to his complaint, he sold 95% of the land (15219 sq metres) to Indu Constructions through its proprietor Nandkishore Bhandari. A conveyance deed was registered in 2006. Last year, Patel decided to sell the balance 767 sq metres of land to an acquaintance, H Naik. "The deal was ongoing when Naik found out that Bhandari was laying claim to the entire property, including the balance of 767 sq metres.

"Since the land was covered with slums, Bhandari had approached the SRA and submitted a scheme for development. On the basis of documents submitted by Bhandari, the SRA granted him a letter of intent (LOI) in December 2012," said Patel's counsel, Sachin Mhatre.

Naik then sent a notice to the SRA asking them to amend the LOI by deleting 767 sq metres of land which he was purchasing from Patel. The SRA responded that the 7/12 extracts of the entire property were in Bhandari's name.

"Through an RTI application, Patel accessed documents related to his deal with Bhandari. He suspected that his signature was forged on a deed of rectification in 2013," said Mhatre. The police were not willing to register his complaint. Patel then approached the Borivali magistrate court. In his complaint, he also accused certain SRA officials of being hand-in-glove with the developer.

Bhandari's business partner, Hitesh P, refuted the allegations. "We have filed a complaint against Patel at the Andheri magistrate court and the matter is still being heard. We had also sent legal notices to Patel, after learning about his property deal with Naik, but there was no response from him. We have all the necessary papers to support our claim," he said.

Officials from the Vanrai police station said they are in the process of procuring all concerned documents to verify claims made by both parties.

Unprepared PIOs annoy Information Commissioner

News Hub: Bangalore: Saturday, 28 February 2015.

Shankar R. Patil, Commissioner, Karnataka Information Commission, was exasperated with the lack of preparedness of the concerned Public Information Officers (PIOs) and their representatives at the Zilla Panchayat meeting hall here on Friday. Mr. Patil was here as part of his official State-wide tour for hearing cases at the respective district headquarters.

He got irritated when he understood that the representatives of PIOs in some cases did not have a basic knowledge either about the RTI Act or about the particular case in which they were the representing PIOs.

While hearing the cases, he observed that the concerned PIOs had furnished the information sought by the applicant only after knowing about his scheduled hearing at the district headquarters.

In some other cases, the absence of PIOs prompted him to issue stern notices to the delinquent officers seeking explanation as to why a penalty should not imposed on them under Section 20(1) of RTI Act.

In most of the cases, he ordered the respective PIOs to provide the information to applicant he sought within 10 days.

Considering the inadequacies of PIOs at the lower levels of the administrative apparatus across the State in handling applications under RTI Act, Shankar R Patil, Commissioner, Karnataka Information Commission, stressed on the need to inculcate a thorough knowledge about the Act among PIOs through proper training and workshops.

In many cases, people are denied simple information and forced to appeal before the concerned appellate authorities and then file petitions before the Information Commission, because of a dearth of knowledge about the Act among PIOs, he said.

This would lead not only to piling up of casesbefore the Information Commission , but also the denial of people’s right to information, he said.

‘Formulate record retention schedule’

The Hindu: Thiruvananthapuram: Saturday, 28 February 2015.

The government has issued orders stipulating that all public sector units and autonomous institutions in the State should formulate a record retention schedule so that when information is sought under the Right to Information Act (RTI), replies such as file ‘missing’ or ‘not traceable’ are not given.

Such a reply would defeat the very purpose of the RTI Act.

Unless proved that the record was destroyed in accordance with the prescribed destruction/retention policy, it is deemed that record continues to be held by the public authority.

‘‘Claims of file missing or not traceable have no legality as it is not recognised as exception by RTI Act,’’ the government order said.

आरटीआई का जवाब 40 हजार पन्नों में

अमर उजाला: लखनऊ: Saturday, 28 February 2015.

एक आरटीआई का जवाब 40 हजार पन्नों में, चौंक गए न। लेकिन जल निगम ने सुप्रीम कोर्ट की अनुश्रवण समिति के सदस्य डीके जोशी द्वारा सूचना अधिकार के तहत मांगी गई जानकारी इतने पन्नों में उपलब्ध कराई है। यह अलग बात है कि यह मांगी गई सूचना के एक बिंदु का जवाब है। अभी चार और बिंदुओं पर जवाब मिलना बाकी है। यही जवाब विभाग ने दो साल में दिए, वह भी सूचना आयोग की सख्ती के बाद। इस सूचना के आधार पर डीके जोशी बदहाल होती यमुना की लड़ाई लड़ने के लिए हाईकोर्ट जाने की तैयारी कर रहे हैं।

डीके जोशी ने 21 नवंबर 2012 को कार्यालय परियोजना प्रबंधक, यमुना प्रदूषण नियंत्रण इकाई, उत्तर प्रदेश जल निगम से शहर में संचालित सीवेज पंपिंग स्टेशन (एसपीएस) और सीवेज ट्रीटमेंट प्लांट (एसटीपी) से संबंधित जानकारी मांगी थी। इसमें उन्होंने वर्ष 2000 से सूचना उपलब्ध कराए जाने की तिथि तक विभाग द्वारा शहर में बिछाई गई सीवेज लाइन और ट्रंक लाइन, इन पर खर्च होने वाली धनराशि को उपलब्ध कराने वाली संस्था, शहर में स्थापित एसपीएस और एसटीपी की संख्या और इनकी क्षमता, इनकी देखरेख और संचालन में होने वाले खर्च के अलावा एसपीएस और एसटीपी की लॉग बुक (सीवेज का कितना पानी लिफ्ट किया और कितना ट्रीट किया) का ब्योरा मांगा था। विभाग ने पांच सूचनाओं में से एक का भी जवाब डीके जोशी को उपलब्ध नहीं कराया। इस पर जोशी ने सूचना आयोग की शरण ली। वहां भी काफी दिनों तक मामला चलता रहा। उनकी याचिका पर विभाग के अधिकारी तलब किए गए। आयोग ने फटकार लगाई तो विभाग सक्रिय हुआ। अब जाकर गत 16 फरवरी को विभाग ने डीके जोशी को एसपीएस और एसटीपी की लॉग बुक का ब्योरा लगभग 40 हजार पन्नों में उपलब्ध कराया। परियोजना प्रबंधक एवं जन सूचना अधिकारी खालिद अहमद ने 194 नगों में यह सूचना उपलब्ध कराई।

छह महीने में तैयार किया जवाब

डीके जोशी ने वर्ष 2000 से सूचना उपलब्ध कराने तक की तिथि तक जानकारी मांगी थी। सूचना आयोग ने जब जल निगम को जवाब उपलब्ध कराने के निर्देश दिए तो इसे जुटाने में विभाग का दम फूल गया। सूत्रों की मानें तो विभाग को जवाब तैयार करने में लगभग छह महीने लग गए। इसमें से भी अभी पूरे जवाब नहीं दिए हैं।

सूचना का क्या करेंगे जोशी

दरअसल, डीके जोशी ने जो सूचना मांगी है, 40 हजार पन्नों में मिले जवाब के अध्ययन के बाद वह एक रिपोर्ट तैयार करेंगे कि इतने खर्च के बाद आखिर सीवेज का गंदा पानी यमुना में सीधे कैसे जा रहा है। यमुना इतनी दूषित क्यों हो रही है। बता दें, यमुना को बचाने के लिए केंद्र और राज्य सरकार से मोटी धनराशि आवंटित कराई जाती है, उसके एक बड़े हिस्से का दुरुपयोग होता है।

विभाग को भुगतना पड़ा आर्थिक नुकसान

जल निगम यदि तय समय सीमा में सूचना उपलब्ध करा देता तो 40 हजार पन्नों के जवाब पर आने वाले खर्च से बच जाता। विशेषज्ञों की मानें तो 40 हजार पन्नों की कीमत लगभग 32 हजार रुपये होगी और इनकी फोटो स्टेट पर ही लगभग 12 हजार रुपये खर्च हुए होंगे। यदि विभाग 15 दिन में यह सूचना उपलब्ध करा देता तो यह खर्चा याचिकाकर्ता को उठाना पड़ता।

वर्जन

अभी मुझे पूरा जवाब नहीं मिला है। खर्च का विस्तृत ब्योरा उपलब्ध नहीं कराया गया है। सूचना आयोग में मामला अब भी लंबित है। विभाग को सभी सूचनाएं हर हाल में उपलब्ध करानी होंगी।

- डीके जोशी, सदस्य, अनुश्रवण समिति, सुप्रीम कोर्ट

आरटीआई का सख्ती से पालन कराएं अधिकारी: उस्मानी

नवभारत टाइम्स: लखनऊ: Saturday, 28 February 2015.

मुख्य सूचना आयुक्त जावेद उस्मानी ने प्रदेश के सभी प्रमुख सचिवों, सचिवों, विभागाध्यक्षों, मंडलायुक्तों, जिलाधिकारियों और पुलिस अधिकारियों को निर्देश दिए गए हैं कि वह सूचना का अधिकार अधिनियम का सख्ती से पालन सुनिश्चित करवाएं। अधिकारियों से कहा गया है कि वह एक्ट के नियमों के तहत तीस दिन में आवेदकों को स्थानीय स्तर पर सूचनाएं मुहैया करवाएं। अगर मामला आयोग में पहुंचता है और सूचना देने में अधिकारियों की लापरवाही उजागर होती है, तो उन पर जुर्माने के साथ क्षतिपूर्ति और विभागीय कार्रवाई की संस्तुति आयोग द्वारा की जाएगी।

Whistleblower’s hunt in PEB scam hits RTI roadblock

Hindustan Times: Bhopal: Saturday, 28 February 2015.

A whistleblower seeking information in the Professional Examination Board (PEB) scam through the Right to Information (RTI) has hit a roadblock.

Ashish Chaturvedi, resident of Gwalior, had brought to light the use of fraudulent means used in admissions in the Gwalior Medical College even before the PEB scam broke in July 2013.

Fraud medical admissions were among the most crucial aspects of the multi-layered PEB scam. Chaturvedi had also lodged a complaint with the Gwalior police in the matter.

After receiving several threat calls, he was provided with police protection.

To support his allegations, Chaturvedi had written two separate RTI applications in 2012, seeking information about certain candidates (with their roll numbers) who appeared in the Pre-Medical Test (PMT) in 2006, 2009 and 2010.

He also filed three separate applications with the office of the director of medical education (DME) in 2013, seeking details on fake students appearing in Pre-Post-Graduate (medical) entrance test between 2005 and 2012, students who were admitted for PG medical courses on basis of affidavits and details related to alleged fraud committed by private medical colleges for converting free seats to payment seats through admission cancellations.

Chaturvedi told HT that he has not received information even two years of filing the applications. As for the PEB applications, the board refused him information saying it involved third party interests.

On February 24, Chaturvedi’s second appeals with the State Information Commission (SIC) in both the cases were deferred for hearing till June 16 because of unavailability of chief information commissioner KD Khan.

On February 25, while hearing the second appeals related to the DME applications, the SIC directed that Chaturvedi should be immediately provided with information sought.

"However, the DME officials kept me waiting in their office for a long time and did not provide any documents," Chaturvedi told HT (documents are available with HT).

Director of medical education Dr SS Kushwaha said he does not directly deal with RTI queries, but he’d ensure that the detail was provided to the applicant.

Officials undergo RTI training

The Hindu: Thanjavur: Saturday, 28 February 2015.

State Information Commissioner S.F. Akbar inaugurated a training programme for government officials on the Right to Information Act here on Friday.

Superintendent of Police G. Dharmaraj, Dy. SPs, police officers, and officials from various government departments, including Revenue, participated in the training programme that sought to enlighten them on dealing with RTI related issues.

Later, the participants were exposed on the need to reply properly and in time to RTI related queries, dealing with issues arising out of RTI applications and the like.

Penalty imposed on information officer in Arunachal

Zee News: Itanagar: Friday, 27 February 2015.

The Arunachal Pradesh Information Commission (APIC) has imposed a penalty of Rs. 25,000 to JDEE Public Information Officer (PIO), Monya Nyori under section 20(1) of the RTI Act 2005.

The penalty was imposed for deliberately defying the orders of the Commission to furnish details to one Toko Sera who in an appeal sought information which, was in public?s domain, an official release said here today.

Earlier, the PIO was directed to deposit the said penalty amount in favour of the Registrar, APIC through Treasury Challan on or before April 9 next.

The Commission also directed the PIO to appear on the same date along with the deposited copy of the challan including information as sought by appellant.

It said that on failure to comply with its order, the Commission would be compelled to invoke section 20(2) of the Right to Information Act, 2005, the release added.

Distribute sweets on national festivals: CIC

The Hindu: New Delhi: Friday, 27 February 2015.

The Central Information Commission (CIC) on Wednesday recommended that distribution of sweets by civic bodies in here should be carried out on “national festivals in order to promote the cultural diversity in the nation” instead of restricting the practice to religious holidays.

In his order dated February 25, Information Commissioner Yashovardhan Azad said the details of order should also be marked to the Commissioners of the three municipal bodies. The CIC disposed of an appeal sought by appellant Subhash Chandra Agarwal regarding distribution of sweets and gifts on several festivals and occasions by the New Delhi Municipal Council.

Replying to an RTI application filed by the Delhi-based activist, the NDMC Health Department had responded in May 2014: “The NDMC has been distributing sweets to safai karamcharis on the occasion of Diwali. This year, the competent authorities in consultation with senior officers decided to distribute sweets to all the employees on the occasion of Holi.” It further added that in March 2014 sweets were procured at a total cost of Rs.91, 95,070 for distribution to all NDMC employees on the eve of Holi.

27% of govt schools without DJB water: NGO

Times of India: New Delhi: Friday, 27 February 2015.

Over a quarter of Delhi's government schools are functioning without a water connection. Of the 798 that bothered to respond to a query filed under RTI by a Delhi NGO, 220—27.5%—reported they don't have a Delhi Jal Board connection.

"We work in the northeast district (there are 13 school districts in Delhi) and know of schools that have no water supply. We wanted to know what the situation is in other parts of Delhi," says Rajiv Kumar who runs Pardarshita in New Seemapuri. Kumar believes that a similar RTI application filed in 2014 resulted in one school in the area getting connected.

As per data received by the NGO, the maximum number of schools without connections is in the northeast district—50. In southwest B, there are 41 schools and in south, 30. However, the count in these districts may be higher simply because they have bothered to furnish complete lists. There are only 24 schools in northwest B that don't have DJB connections as per the RTI responses but the actual number may be higher—there are several schools that haven't replied. It's the same situation with southeast 17 have declared they're without water connections but over 40 haven't responded.

"Absence of a DJB connection does not mean there's no water," clarifies Padmini Singla, director, education. "In those cases, we give permission for bore-wells." "Schools got bore-wells some time ago," agrees Ajay Vir Yadav, general secretary of Government School Teachers' Association. "If the school doesn't have a RO system or there's no maintenance, that's pure negligence. However, bore-wells don't function too well in certain parts of town."

On paper, there are provisions. "Most schools will tell you they use groundwater," says Kumar. "But in reality you'll find that in some schools there's no safe drinking water. One principal tells me she calls the tanker but it comes three days late. There are also cases where the filtration systems aren't cleaned regularly." He also maintains that the list of schools without connections includes both old and new schools.

Dozen farm schemes remain merely on paper

Deccan Chronicle: THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Friday, 27 February 2015.

The State is getting ready for another annual Budget but there are a dozen agriculture-related schemes of previous years yet to be implemented.

An RTI query filed by DC revealed that the Central and State schemes like National Agricultural Insurance Scheme (NAIS), the national project on organic farming, promotion and strengthening of agricultural mechanisation, seed infrastructure and farmers’ welfare fund board remained on paper.

The reply from the deputy director of agriculture (planning) says six projects announced in the State budget during the first year of the UDF Government (2011-12), notably the NAIS, Kuttanad and Idukki packages and agricultural extension programmes at Kerala Agricultural University, are to be implemented.

No action was taken on farmers’ welfare fund board and pilot scheme on income support (2012-14) and the new scheme to set up automatic weather station, farmers welfare fund board, pilot scheme on income support and agricultural mechanization (2013-14).

An agriculture department official told DC that the NAIS was one of the flagship projects that would have helped the State to deal with the flood and drought situations by providing compensation packages to the affected farmers.

Regarding the KAU agricultural extension project, a KAU official confirmed to DC that the project is vast and varied, but fund utilization never happened as the State Government never transferred funds.

“By not implementing the projects, it is affecting only the farmers. The pilot scheme on income support was meant for making farmers self-sufficient.

Promotion and strengthening of agricultural mechanism were meant for providing tractors, tillers and harvesting machines to farmers which has also not been implemented,” a department official told DC.

When DC put forth the question before top agriculture department officials on the current status of the Kuttanad and Idukki packages, they were unable to give a convincing reply.

But P. Ajay of Kottayam Nature Society told DC that few months ago, local MP Kodikunnil Suresh had lamented about the Kuttanad package’s tenure being over.

“But now posters and banners congratulating Prime Minister Narendra Modi have come up in some areas of Kuttanad saying the package has been extended.

Earlier granite bund was being done which was systematic, but now pile and slab system is being initiated. Unfortunately ecological restoration has never been done in Kuttanad,” said Mr. Ajay.

College told to give grant info

The Asian Age: New Delhi: Friday, 27 February 2015.

In a judgement that will set a precedent for colleges to give out information to queries sought under the Right To Information (RTI) Act, the State Information Commissioner (SIC) has directed a South Mumbai college to share details of faculties, students enrolled and the use of grants that are received by the institution from various government bodies for academic and infrastructure purposes.

According to Advocate Dharmendra Mishra who had sought information under RTI from a college based in South Mumbai in 2013, the college had been refusing to part with the information on one pretext or the other, forcing him to approach the SIC after his reminders, as per the norms, failed to elicit satisfactory responses from the college.

“After the first hearing of the SIC, the college provided incomplete information due to which I had to approach the SIC again. In the second appeal, the commissioner Ajit Kumar Jain observed that while the college had provided replies they were insufficient and that the prayer of the appellant was valid and the college had to provide the information as it was an aided institution,” said Mr Mishra.

He added that while the information commissioner asked the college to give detailed information about the faculties and the use of the grants that the college received from various academic authorities, it instructed the college to part with information about enrolled students as per the norms of the university.

“Many aided colleges resort to unscrupulous means and hence this order is in the right direction. It will increase the accountability of the colleges and bring in transparency in their work,” Mr Mishra added.

PMO blocks access to information on ministers’ assets

Times of India: New Delhi: Friday, 27 February 2015.

In a blow to transparency, the PMO has decided to block public access to the wealth declarations made by ministers. The details of assets and liabilities of the union council of ministers has been available online since 2010. However, the details are now password protected and can only be accessed by the authorized personnel.

In fact information on assets and liabilities of the present council of ministers was available till recently. According to the website pmindia.gov.in, the information was last updated on February 11, 2015 when the user name and password protection might have been introduced.

National Campaign for People's Right to Information (NCPRI) member Anjali Bhardwaj said, "We are convinced that the PM does not want to be transparent and give people information.'' She said a bigger concern was that there would be no one to complain to. "The chief information commissioner happens to be the adjudicator for the PMO. In the absence of a CIC (the post has remained vacant since August 2014) we cannot even file a complaint against the government,'' she added.

RTI activist S C Agrawal on whose RTI query the information was made public described it as a "blow to transparency'' adding that a series of missteps was working towards halting the progress made under the RTI Act. There are at present over 37,000 cases pending before the Commission. The huge backlog compounded by the lack of staff has crippled the Commission's work.

The disclosures of union ministers' assets and liabilities had marked a landmark step towards accountability and transparency in the government and came after a year of sarkari stonewalling on an RTI application filed by Agrawal with the CIC citing public interest. The chief information commissioner had ordered that the detailed list of assets and liabilities, their business interests and that of their family must be made public if the leaders of both houses give permission. Parliament was of the opinion that no permission was required for disclosure forcing the Union Cabinet this week to adopt a resolution that the assets would be made public.

Members of the House have to declare their assets and liabilities within 90 days of taking oath as MPs under Rule 3 of the Members of the Lok Sabha (Declaration of Assets and Liabilities Rules, 2004).

The PMO dropped its stand against making public ministers' assets and liabilities after the making of complete details filed by the elected representatives in 2010.

Singaji project failed to utilize 70% of its coal allocation: RTI query

Times of India: Bhopal: Friday, 27 February 2015.

Shri Singaji Thermal Power Station (SSTPS) in Khandwa district of Madhya Pradesh, a venture of the state government likely to be inaugurated by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 1, has remained an under performer with poor plant load factor (PLF) and consumed only 30% of it total coal allocation.

An RTO query by TOI reveals that the 600 KW first phase of the project failed to utilize coal allocation by Union coal ministry.

Replying to the query, Coal India Limited has informed that between January and November 2014, a total of 9.18 lakh metric tonne of coal was supplied to the Shri Singaji Thermal Power Station. Total quota of coal for this unit is around 24.5 lakh metric tonne but MP power generation company limited, that operates the plant, failed to procure it, said sources. CIL is bound by fuel supply agreement to supply a minimum of 65% of coal requirement for the project.

However, officials of the MP power genco blame railways for its inability to utilize coal allotted for the unit.

"Railways have not been able to provide adequate number of rakes for this power station which has a coal linkage from mine in Chhattisgarh's Korba district. We have raised the issue with railways several times. Now, senior railway officials are visiting the power station in this regard," executive director (ED) fuel management, A R Sankule told TOI.

Contrary to this, documents in possession of TOI reveal the plant has only performed at 25% of its capacity (Plant load factor) in last one year. Its coal consumption per unit should have been around 670 gms of coal as per the MP power genco, but its average coal consumption per unit generation has been around 800 gms which makes power costlier by at least 20%.

First unit of 600 MW of Singaji project was started commercial operations from February 1, 2014.

Officials of the MP power genco are busy ahead of the Prime Minister's proposed visit to Khandwa and senior officials including its managing director are stationed at the power station to ensure that all operations are smooth.

Officials are concerned about the irrational coal linkage made for project and are planning to raise the issue with Prime Minister so that it could be resolved. At present the transportation of coal to this plant costs more than the price of coal, as the mine is located at a distance of more than 1,000 kilometers.

Govt: Editors’ Council statement ‘unfortunate’.

Dhaka Tribune: Bangladesh : Thursday, February 26, 2015.

Media was enjoying full freedom, reads the statement

The information ministry in a statement said the statement published in the name of the Editors’ Council was "unfortunate and regrettable."

It on Wednesday said at a time when the media was enjoying full freedom such a statement was "neither realistic nor desirable."

It went on to say the current government had enacted the Right to Information (RTI) Act, set up the Information Commission and Human Rights' Commission and announced the Eighth Wage Board for the overall development, protection and welfare of the media and media persons.

Moreover, it had taken a number of steps including constituting the Journalists' Welfare Trust for the benefit of working journalists.

The statement cited several steps including the Press Council Act and the National Broadcasting Commission as contributing to the general development of the media. It also said that the Penal Code had been amended to give media person's clemency.

The statement said under the current government the media had "boomed" and that there was double the number of publications than in the past.

Besides, 26 television channels were also permitted and 11 FM radios and 32 community radios were provided licensees to operate during the tenure of the present government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

The government also said no media outlet or any stakeholder was taken to task for their media activities.

The statement further said parliament had the right to discuss all issues pertaining to the nation.

It said the government welcomes factual criticism and analysis as it improves its functioning through better transparency and accountability.

It reiterated the government's position that the media was an integral part of a democratic order.

Rose or Sweet Box? Portable Devices new Scourge in Sex Selection.

Indian Express : Coimbotore : Thursday, February 26, 2015.

The Supreme Court guidelines banning pre-natal sex determination and The Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act, 1994, do not seem to have deterred the use of handheld portable ultrasound scan devices by private hospitals across the State. Inquiries with activists, NGOs and health officials revealed that many scan centres in Cuddalore, Tiruvallur, Krishnagiri and Dharmapuri districts disclose the sex of the foetus using such devices and some even help in sex-selective abortion.

Determination of the sex of foetus and foeticide has been cited as one of the reasons for low sex ratio.

Health Department sources said the portable units comprise a monitor (the size of micro laptops), a probe and cables and are compact enough to fit into a doctor’s briefcase.

Dr Hariprasad, block development officer in the Department of Public Health, Krishnagiri, said some qualified scan centres, to remain on the safer side, use code words or signals to reveal the gender of the foetus instead of giving authenticated reports. For instance, women pregnant with a male foetus would be given sweet boxes along with the receipt.

Seven scan centres in Cuddalore, Neyveli, Panruti and Vadalur areas use codes like chocolate or rose to indicate a female foetus.

A Chandranathan, director of Medical and Rural Health Services, said they were unaware of the misuse of the portable machines to identify foetal sex, but based on suspicion, surveillance teams would be deployed in Tiruvallur and Krishnagiri districts.

A senior health official acknowledged that scan centres in Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri hide portable machines in locked rooms and provide records of conventional machines during inspection. Gunasundari, joint director of Health Services, Dharmapuri, said portable devices were often shifted within hospital premises making it difficult to track their use.

Scan centres under-report data

Though the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act mandates scan centres to submit a monthly report on the number of patients scanned in their centres, nearly 30 per cent of such centres have not submitted the report, an RTI query said. 

Pol removed for conducting séance: Pawar.

Times of India: Pune: Thursday, February 26, 2015. 

Former deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar on Wednesday said his government had transferred former Pune police commissioner Gulabrao Pol because he was accused of conducting a seance, a paranormal activity in which the spirits of the dead are supposedly called, to find killers of anti-superstition activist Narendra Dabholkar. 

Hamid, son of Narendra Dabholkar, has asked the state government to register an offence against Pol under the Maharashtra Anti-superstition and Black Magic Act 2013. 

Pol's lawyer Harshad Nimbalkar issued a statement immediately stating that his client was given a clean-chit by the committee formed by the government to probe the matter. 

Pol refused to make a statement when asked for a comment on Pawar's allegation. 

Pawar told the media that 19 police teams were formed to nab Dabholkar's killers. 

"It was found that senior police officers themselves were using superstitious methods like planchette to nab the killers. The government disapproved of this action and therefore transferred the police commissioner,'' Pawar said. 

"By transferring Pol we wanted to send a message that we strongly disapprove of superstition and black magic, against which Dabholkar fought all his life," Pawar added. 

Speaking to TOI, Hamid Dabholkar said Pawar's statement after such a long time is surprising. "It only shows the government was insensitive through out the investigation," he said. 

Expecting immediate action from BJP-Shiv Sena government, Hamid said, "Now this government should file cases against Pol and the other person, Manish Tiwari, who allegedly conducted the seance. The government should take action and arrest them under the Maharashtra Anti-superstition and Black Magic Act. We had filed complaint against Pol and Tiwari way back; however no action has been taken yet." 

Hamid also criticized the present government for its failure to find the killers of veteran communist leader Govind Pansare. 

Prakash More, another of Pol's lawyer from Kolhapur, told TOI that Pawar may be unaware of the report given by the committee formed to investigate the charges against Pol. "The committee in its report submitted on August 28, 2014 stated that no such activities were performed to investigate Dabholkar murder case," said More. 

"Following a complaint filed by members of the Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti (MANS) on July 11, 2014 against Pol stating that he used seance to investigate Dabholkar murder case, the state government formed a committee under B D Mishra, additional DGP (Civil Rights Protection) to investigate the charges. The committee investigated the allegations and within 45 days submitted a report to the state government giving clean cheat to Pol. We have received the complete report submitted to the state government on February 3, 2015 through RTI," said More. 

"Pol was transferred from Pune to Thane on March 4, 2014. He left the charge in Pune on March 5 and by the time he had applied for VRS which was granted on April," added More.

Water board yet to get its share of property tax.

Times of India: Hyderabad : Thursday, February 26, 2015.

When it comes to sharing of property tax revenue with the Hyderabad Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) is showing utmost reluctance. 

As per GO 461, issued in 2009, the GHMC is supposed to remit 25 percent of the property tax it collects to the water board. But the GHMC has so far failed to give the HMWS&SB a single paisa in the last six years, an RTI query revealed. 

While the GHMC has been going hammer and tongs against property tax defaulters, it owes the water board (HMWSSB) a whooping Rs 1,500 crore. 

HMWS&SB officials say they may be forced to increase the water tariff in the GHMC limits mainly due to the GHMC's stubborn attitude in denying them their share in the property tax. 

B Satyanandam, general manager (Revenue), water board, said the GHMC contintued to be a tough customer. 

"It has always been the responsibility of the urban local body, which in this case is the GHMC to ensure proper supply of water and disposal of sewerage. The GHMC should have sent the money to the water board as mandated by the government order," said G R Karunaker, a civic activist. 

The civic body is not only bound by the GO, even section 199 of the GHMC Act of 1955 says that property tax consists of general, water, drainage, lighting and conservancy taxes. Legally, the water tax must be given to the respective department handling the matter, experts say. 

"At this point of time when the city is staring at a dry spell, it should have been the GHMC's responsibility to give a share of the property tax to the water board so that it could use the money for developmental work," Karunakar added. 

A few projects that have been hit by the fund-crunch are the yet-to-be commissioned Krishna Phase-III and the recently commissioned Godavari water project. Due to delays in both projects, the city is dependent for water on Osmansagar and Himayathsagar.

Kashmiri Devi worst in House attendance.

Hindustan Times : Chandigadh : Thursday, February 26, 2015. 

They may make a lot of hue and cry over the lack of powers to the municipal corporation, but many councillors care little about the MC House meetings, reflected in their dismal attendance record.

In the four years of the current House, former Congress MP Pawan Kumar Bansal — who was ex-officio member as MP, from 2012 to his loss in the Lok Sabha polls last year — missed 20 of the 32 meetings. Even the present MP, BJP’s Kirron Kher, was found absent in nine of the 12 meetings held in her tenure so far.

The details — sought from January 2012 to January 2015 — were obtained under the Right to Information (RTI) Act. In all, 44 meetings were held in this period.

The worst among councillors was former senior deputy mayor Rana Kashmiri Devi, who missed 26 of the 44 meetings. Nominated councillor Sat Paul Bansal missed 12, while BSP councillors Jannat Jahan and Naresh Kumar missed 11 each. Nominated councillor Dr Amrita Tewari was absent in eight of the meetings. Devi, 67, who recently switched to the BJP from Congress, is the oldest member of the House and represents Ward 14. She has not even uttered a single word in the House so far.

On the other hand, councillors with 100% attendance include BJP’s Arun Sood, Davesh Moudgil and Satish Kainth, and Congress’ Darshan Garg, Mukesh Bassi and Harphool Chander Kalyan.

Fruitless exercise?

Every year, MC civic body spends around `12 lakh and 84 hours on the monthly House meetings, but has failed to solve important civic issues. Each meeting costs `1 lakh, of which `60,000 is spent on lunch, while `500 is paid as honorarium to each councillor for attending the meeting. In a majority of these meetings, MC councillors paid lip service on issues such as provision of basic amenities.

Last year, of the 12 meetings, six passed without any fruitful discussion on civic issues. Most turned out to be noisy affairs and failed to achieve any specific result.

Rather than discussing issues such as stray dogs or the cattle menace, waterlogging, encroachment, water scarcity, shortage of sweepers, councillors from both the BJP and Congress were found indulging in petty arguments.

In the House of 36, after a series of defections from the Congress, the BJP-SAD combine has 14 members, plus MP Kirron Kher; the Congress has eight, one is Independent, while the BSP has two; and there are nine nominated councillors. One seat (ward 10) is vacant due to the death of the councillor.

Over 37,000 RTI Appeals Pending With CIC.

Indian Express : New Delhi : Tursday, February 26, 2015.

Over 37,000 appeals under the RTI Act are pending with the Central Information Commission, the government today said, indicating that a lack of time limit for disposal of 2nd appeals by the body is the reason behind the large pendency. 

As on February 17, a total of 37,935 2nd appeals are pending with the CIC, Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh informed the Lok Sabha in a written reply. 

"As per the Right to Information Act, the RTI applications and first appeals are required to be mandatorily disposed off within 30 days of their receipt. However, no time limit has been prescribed for disposal of 2nd appeals pending with the CIC," he said. 

As on December 31, 2013, 22,097 2nd appeals were pending before the information body. The number stood at 35,854 on December 31, 2014.

CBI sends backdated communications to RTI pleas.

Deccan Herald : New Delhi : Thursday, February 26, 2015.

In an example of callousness in handling applications filed under the RTI Act, the CBI has sent a reply dated even before the application was filed, apparently aimed at not giving 30-day period to the applicant to file his appeal.

Sending backdated communication for application under statutory provisions is a serious offence under the Right to Information (RTI) Act. Under Section 18 of the Act, a CPIO (Central Public Information Officer) can be slapped with a penalty for giving "false and misleading" information.

If sending backdated communication was not enough, the CPIO of Anti-Corruption Unit of the agency also returned the postal order of RTI fee which is again an offence under the transparency law.

Claiming exemption from disclosure under the RTI Act, CPIO Ratan Sanjay returned the RTI application, along with the fee, seeking status of closed Preliminary Enquiries related to allegations of corruption -- an information which is provided in the annual report of the agency, a public document.

Ironically, the reply no. 568/1-RTI/CBI/AC-II/2015 is dated January 3, 2015 whereas the application was dated January 16, 2015, showing that the agency might be using templates to respond to applications without applying mind to the information sought.

Sending backdated reply apparently could also be aimed at not giving 30-day period to the applicant to file his appeal.

The then Chief Information Commissioner Satyananda Mishra had sought the intervention of then CBI Director A P Singh, underlining that the agency was returning the applications after CBI was brought in the list of organisations exempted from the RTI Act.

Singh had then directed the officials to not return the RTI applications but with new Director Anil Sinha at the helm of affairs, the practice of returning the applications has again started.

HC directs DVAC to upload its crime manual on website within six weeks.

The Hindu: Madurai: Wednesday, Feb 25, 2015.

In a significant judgement, the Madras High Court Bench here on Tuesday ordered Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) to upload its crime manual, a compilation of government instructions and guidelines to investigating officers on the mode of enquiry to be adopted by them in corruption cases, on its website within six weeks.

Justice M. Sathyanarayanan passed the order after rejecting the submission of the DVAC that the manual was a privileged document and it could not be made public. The judge held that the DVAC was not entitled to claim such a privilege in the era of Right to Information Act and especially when the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) itself had hosted its crime manual on its website.

The order was passed on a batch of cases filed by a few public servants who wanted to mark the manual as one of the documents before the trial court to prove that the investigating officer in the corruption case against them had not followed procedures prescribed under the manual. The DVAC had refused to issue a copy of the manual to them and hence the present petitions.

One of their counsels, F. Deepak, argued that the directorate could not insist on keeping the manual secret much to the disadvantage of the accused who required it desperately to establish their innocence during the course of trial.

He also recalled that the State Information Commission had directed the DVAC to furnish a copy of the manual to an RTI applicant on November 28, 2011.

The directorate challenged the commission’s order by filing a writ petition in the High Court. Justice D. Hariparanthaman dismissed the petition in December 2012 and upheld the information commission’s order. Wondering why the manual should be kept a secret, the judge said: “I am not able to understand as to why the DVAC feels shy to furnish the manual.”

He added: “At this juncture, I wish to refer to the submission by senior counsel G. Rajagopalan for Tamil Nadu Information Commission that the manual is not exempted from disclosure as per section 8 of the RTI Act… Therefore, the RTI applicant is entitled to the manual.” “Despite this order, the DVAC continued to maintain the manual as a secret document,” the counsel added.

Order against NGT Registrar General stayed.

The Hindu : New Delhi : Wednesday, Feb 25, 2015.

An order of the Central Information Commission (CIC) passing adverse remarks against the Registrar General of the National Green Tribunal was stayed by the Delhi High Court on Tuesday.

The CIC had also recommended the Registrar General’s replacement from the post of the First Appellate Authority for the RTI cases at the NGT.

While staying the January 14 order, Justice Rajiv Shakdher also issued notice to an RTI applicant, on whose plea the CIC had passed the order, and posted the case for hearing on May 6.

The court’s order came on a petition of the NGT, which has sought quashing of the CIC order.

The court also removed the CIC as a respondent in the case after a plea was raised that there was no need for making the commission a party in the matter.

The NGT contended in its petition that the CIC’s directions seemed to have been passed without any legal requirement or justification.

It said the impugned order was also beyond the jurisdiction of the CIC under the RTI Act.

Days before Pillai row, Environment told Coal: stop Mahan block auction.

Indian Express : New Delhi: Wednesday Feb 25, 2015.

Three weeks before Greenpeace activist Priya Pillai was stopped from travelling to London where she was to speak on the alleged violation of forest rights of tribals in the Mahan coal block area of Madhya Pradesh, the Ministry of Environment and Forests asked the Ministry of Coal not to auction the block as it is “located in inviolate forest area”.

Pillai was stopped at Delhi airport on January 11 on the basis of a look-out-circular issued by the Intelligence Bureau. She was headed to London for a meeting of the British all-party parliamentary group.

In an office memorandum to the Joint Secretary, Ministry of Coal — the OM dated December 22, 2014 was obtained by Greenpeace India under the RTI Act — the Director, Forest Conservation Division of the MoEF, stated: “Though Stage II FC to Mahan coal block has already been accorded, mining in the block has not been started. The block may, therefore, not be auctioned as the block is located in inviolate forest area.”
In the note, FC stands for forest clearance.

The MoEF office memorandum also stopped auction of the Marki-Mangli II block in Maharashtra, citing the same reason — “the block is located in inviolate forest area — and sought phasing out of mining “with expiry of the mining lease” in the Namchik-Namphuk coal block of Arunachal Pradesh.

On December 25, when it launched the auction process of the first batch of coal blocks deallocated by the Supreme Court, the Ministry of Coal dropped Mahan from its list of 24 blocks.

When The Indian Express sought a comment from the Environment and Forests asked the Ministry, Director H C Chaudhary said the OM conveyed the ministry’s considered stand on not mining inviolate forests. The Ministry of Coal, Chaudhary said, had not written back.

Mahan Coal Limited is a 50:50 joint venture of Hindalco (Aditya Birla Group) and Essar Power. It proposes to supply coal from the Mahan block of Singrauli to fuel two captive power plants being set up by Essar (2×600 MW) and Hindalco (900-MW).

Activists opposed to the proposed Mahan mines say the project will impact nearly 1200 hectare of sal forests, ending the contiguity of one of central India’s best un-fragmented forest zones spread over 20,000 hectares.

In Himachal use a fishing RTI for personal not public interest.

HP Hill Post: Shimla: Wednesday, Feb 25, 2015. 

The Right to Information (RTI) Act is fast turning into a weapon for government employees to settle professional scores in Himachal Pradesh.

Though the maintainability of the pleas filed by one government employee against another for information pertaining to professional conduct is debatable, the filing of such “frivolous” or “personal-in-nature” applications is on the rise despite a state information commission directive in this regard.

“On an average, more than 60 per cent of the total applications are those relating to the issues of government employees,” a senior functionary in the information commission told IANS, requesting anonymity as the official is not authorised to speak to the media.

He said that a major number of queries are from those who want to know not only professional but also personal information about their colleagues – subordinates or seniors.

Several applications have been filed seeking information on the income tax returns of officers, names of their spouses and even their marital status.

Issues regarding promotion, elevation from state administrative or police services to the IAS (Indian Administrative Service) or the IPS (Indian Police Service), transfers, drawing and disbursing powers and bills raised by a fellow colleague as travel expenses constitute the major chunk of RTI queries.

“Such queries certainly do not constitute public interest. In fact, they (the applicants) are empowering themselves. But we cannot stop anyone from filing applications,” the official said.

Last year an RTI activist asked how much the government spent on sending boxes of apples as Diwali gifts and a list of the recipients.

One RTI application sought a list of journalists accredited with the state public relations department, their qualification, salary and the like. Later, the journalists gave a written declaration that the qualifications and salary were personal to them and should not be shared with the public.

Interestingly, the RTI activists have not even spared the state information commission authorities.

Only recently, a senior officer in the information commission found himself at the receiving end after an ‘activist’ questioned his absence from the office on a day when certain RTI applications were to be decided. Questions were raised on the reason for his absence from the office. As a result, the very next day, the officer found himself completing all necessary formalities relating to his leave.

The issue of minimising the misuse of the RTI came up while hearing a plea of Shimla’s Himachal Pradesh University professor Shekhar Sharma, who sought official details about the university.

“The appellant himself is a senior functionary of the university and the rules and regulations of the university are accessible to him. Interpretation of rules can be discussed at administrative level. This can’t form the basis of information under the RTI Act,” observed information commissioner K.D. Batish.

“Officials of the public authority, themselves being the custodians of the information, are not expected to access information under the RTI Act,” he noted, while turning down Sharma’s appeal.

“If this practice is encouraged, it will adversely affect efficiency and good governance.”

Warning the government functionaries against using the RTI as a tool to settle personal scores, the order said: “It’s also noticed that some functionaries working under the public authority unnecessarily ask voluminous information in order to settle personal scores with their colleagues.”

Ladies Club comes under RTI.

The Hindu: Bangalore: Wednesday, Feb 25, 2015.

Karnataka Information Commission (KIC) has declared the iconic Ladies Club on Infantry Road as a public authority and brought it under the purview of Right to Information Act, 2005.

The order was issued in a case filed by S Umapathi, an RTI activist. In its order, KIC has stated that as the government has leased out prime land at throwaway prices with a rent as low as Rs 10 per month, it constitutes the government making a significant contribution to the organisation and, hence, it comes under the purview of RTI Act, 2005.

15 Punjab MPAs claim medical bills worth Rs2.7m.

The News : Wasim Abbasi: Islamabad: Tuesday, Feb 24, 2014. 

As many as 15 members of the Punjab’s provincial assembly with a combine asset value of more than Rs1.1 billion have claimed medical expenses worth Rs2.7 million from the national exchequer during last one year and a half, official documents obtained by The News revealed

Surprisingly, barring one, all MPAs who claimed medical expenses from the tax-payer’s money belong to ruling Pakistan Muslim League (N).The certified documents of the Punjab Assembly secretariat show that medical bills ranging from Rs10,800 to Rs 551,817 were claimed by 15 members of provincial assemblies (MPAs) since June 2, 2013.

A review of the assets statements submitted by these 15 MPs with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) revealed that they own assets and cash worth over Rs1.1 billion in total yet they never fail to claim even the smallest amount of medical bill from the national exchequer.

Interestingly, according to government’s own record around 38 per cent of the rural population in Punjab is deprived of basic health facilities but the public representatives from the province seem more interested in claiming their own medical bills from the tax-payers money than enhancing the public health facilities. The certified information obtained earlier by this correspondent had revealed that there are no doctors in 619 basic health units of Punjab.

The information was provided to this correspondent by the Punjab Assembly under the Right to Information and Transparency Act 2013. Earlier this month, the ruling PML-N’s MPA Sheikh Alauddin had claimed in his speech on the floor of Punjab Assembly that some black sheep among the assembly staff were embezzling tens of millions of rupees annually through bogus medical bills in the name of various lawmakers.

Speaking on a point of order on February 11, the MPA from Kasur had claimed that corruption is being carried out in connivance with the Services Hospital employees and drug store owners. He was of the view that lawmakers have no right to enjoy free medicines from the nation, if their voters are not able to get free medical care.

Another Punjab MPA, however, said provincial legislators are legally entitled to get medical facility and reimbursement of medical bills is their right. These members, he said, work honestly for the welfare of the people of their areas. Rs2.7 million medical bills in one and half year is not a big amount.

Priyanka Gandhi Asks Hoimachal Govt to keep her property details secret.

Mail online India: Himachal Pradesh: Tuesday, FEb 24, 2015. 

Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s daughter, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, has asked the Himachal Pradesh government not to divulge details of her property in the state, as this could put her life in danger.

Priyanka wrote to the state government following a July 2014 RTI query by activist Debashish Bhattacharya. 

According to the Shimla deputy commissioner, the information cannot be shared as Priyanka is an SPG protectee. 

In his query, Bhattacharya had sought copies of land records for Priyanka’s properties. 

The records sought by the activist include those on a registration-come-sale deed, the status of the land and the permission granted under Section 118 of the HP Land and Tenancy Act. 

Acting on the application, the additional district magistrate (ADM) of Shimla on July 21, 2014, had asked the tehsildar of Shimla (Rural) to provide the information. However, in August 2014, the ADM changed his views. 

“On 6th August of 2014, the ADM took a U-turn and issued notice to Kehar Singh Khachi, the special power of attorney (SPA) on record of Priyanka Gandhi, and sought his approval for providing the information. 

"In the meantime, the tehsildar also sought fees for providing 30 pages of information on 7th August 2014,” Bhattacharya said. 

On August 25 of 2014 the ADM informed Bhattacharya that the information related to the khasra number cannot be shared for security reasons. 

He disposed of the RTI application by partially releasing information. While he agreed to release the file notings, he refused to divulge information related to the khasra number, citing security concerns. 

Then on September 2, Bhattacharya filed an appeal before the deputy commissioner of Shimla, stating that the reasons for not sharing information were not justified, as the view of the entire land was already available on Google Map. 

The deputy commissioner disposed off Bhattacharya’s appeal on October 28, observing that Kehar Singh Khachi wasn’t Priyanka’s special power of attorney on the date of RTI application. 

ADM Shimla was directed to process the RTI application afresh involving a new special power of attorney of Priyanka. 

Bhattacharya then moved a second appeal on November 19 before the State Information Commission in Shimla.

On November 28, Shimla ADM disposed of the RTI application, saying that new special power of attorney S. Ramakrishnan was appointed by Priyanka and after considering his reply, the entire information can be released. 

With that the ADM amended his own order of August 25. A time period of 10 days was allowed.

However, the Public Information Officer did not provide the information within that time. 

When asked, Shimla deputy commissioner Dinesh Malhotra said the information was denied on the basis of a court order and the recommendations of SPG as Priyanka Gandhi enjoys the SPG security cover. 

“The matter is semi-judicial. I cannot comment on it. The information was denied on the basis of a court order and on the recommendation of SPG,” Malhotra said. 

Meanwhile, on January 9 this year, state chief information commissioner Bhim Sen passed an interim order of imposition of penalty on Shimla ADM for delaying release of information for five months. 

The BJP in Himachal Pradesh has criticised the state government over the case.