Govt body fails to answer RTI query even after 4 years

Assam Times: Guwahati: Monday, 24 August 2015.

An RTI activist denied information even after 4 years of submitting the RTI application to the RTI cell of Nagaon district administration. According to the RTI activist Bhagyadhar Das of Sirmola village, Gospara, Raha revenue circle, “I filed an RTI query to the Project Director, DRDA, Nagaon asking for the list of beneficiaries under IAY scheme of Hatbor village panchayat of Raha constituency on February 25, 2011 and details of completed works of the same panchayat under NREAGA scheme, but to my utter surprise the concerned authorities still fails to answer my RTI application,” the activist said to this correspondent.

The RTI activist alleged that the Project director and the RTI cell of Nagaon district administration passed the buck on one another denying information while he personally contacted them.

The RTI documents, he received from the DRDA Project Director’s office, Nagaon and the RTI cell of the district administration, Nagaon which are with this correspondent revealed that the abovementioned offices received Das’s RTI application on February 25, 2011. After 2 years, the same offices informed Das through a letter that the office was sending an interim reply and suitable response would be sent to him as soon as any input was received from the units concerned in the office.

Later the RTI cell of Nagaon district administration of India, informed the RTI activist that they were neither the custodians of the RTI information sought by him, nor this information was held by or under the control of this public authority, therefore, cannot be provided by it.

This is a classic example as to how the Government officers protecting their fellow officers tend to frustrate the basic intention of the legislature behind the enactment of the Right to Information Act, 2005," said the RTI activist to this correspondent.