State information panel plans to streamline RTI process

Times of India: Panaji: Wednesday, 24 February 2016.

The new Goa state information commission panel with Prashant S P Tendolkar as the state chief information commissioner, Pratima K Vernekar and Juino De Souza as state information commissioners, has disposed of 40 matters since they were inducted into the commission on January 1 this year. The commission has taken it upon itself to dispose of cases pending for the past nine years and the 40 matters disposed of include cases filed between the years 2007-2010.

Over 1,500 cases were pending before the commission when the new panel took over. A considerable amount of time has been spent on issuing notices to parties, some of whom have moved residence and even passed away. In other cases parties have received information requested for under the RTI and aren't interested in pursuing the cases anymore. "We can't go ahead with hearings without issuing notices and granting fair appearance to the parties," Tendolkar said. The speed of disposal of cases is expected to increase in the coming weeks now that a large number of notices have already been issued. The commission plans to club cases relating to each department so that public information officers needn't leave their offices repeatedly to appear for cases. This system will be put in place in June and is applicable only to new cases.

A majority of the cases filed before the commission pertain to the departments of PWD, electricity, town and country planning and panchayats.

The commission directed the director cum administrator cum manager of Sharada Mandir Trust to furnish the audited statement of accounts for the years 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2008-09 to the directorate of education stating that the school run by the trust was a recognized school under the Goa Education Act with the levy of its fees and charges controlled and regulated by the government under the Education Act. Despite it being an unaided school its audited statements are required to be filed as a condition for obtaining and retaining recognition of the school and it cannot claim immunity under the Right to Information Act, on the grounds that it is not a public authority, the commission stated in its order.