Moneylife: Pune: Sunday, October 30,
2016.
While many
activists have been lamenting the lack of seriousness about making Right to
Information (RTI) effective, here is some good news for activists and those
passionate about the extraordinary empowerment that this statute has provided.
The
Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) has invited applications for field
research on compliance of Section-4 by Public Authority, study of effectiveness
of First Appeal Process and providing policy based on the contents of RTI
applications and First Appeals. The idea
is to understand the success or constraints of implementation of the RTI Act.
Hopefully, this detailed research, which is done with the benefit of a
government grant will help activists advocate improvement in the implementation
of the act ver the long run.
The RTI
Fellowship 2016 is open for researchers in the field of media, journalism,
civil society organisations and RTI trainers. The last date of application is
8th of November and the age limits is 40 years. The fellowships are for the the
duration of three months from 15th December, 2016 to 15th March, 2017.
This is not
the first time that such fellowships have been offered. In 2011, RTI Fellows -
Shobha S V, Shibani Ghosh, Sowmya Sivakumar and Nishikanta Mohapatra had
submitted a detailed report in the level of awareness of the people on RTI in
the rural areas. The study researched the achievements of the people through
the use of RTI with a focus on how women have used RTI in rural and urban
areas. Their study also covered the role of Information Commissions in
implementation of the RTI Act. An important conclusion, from my point of view
was this: `` The proper implementation of the RTI Act is dependent on several
factors – training and generation of awareness about the Act and its ambit in
government officials and amongst citizens; change in the mindset of the
‘information-holders’; increased suo moto disclosure of information; resources
to respond to information requests in a timely fashion; strict action for
violation of the provisions of the Act; protection for ‘whistleblowers’;
efficiency and effectiveness of the appellate mechanisms provided under the
Act.’’ Unfortunately, recent attacks on
whistleblowers are proof that the findings have yet to be acted upon by the
government.
Activists
intersted in reading the detailed report can access it here. This will also
help potential applicants to understand
what is required from fellows who are selected under the grant.
Expectations
from the applicant:
The DoPT
circular states: ``The proposal should clearly indicate the output that will be
delivered at the end of the fellowship. It could be in the nature of a
monograph of say 10,000 words which is ready for publication or features /news
stories /investigative stories that could be printed / published as a
journalistic piece in national / international media or in the case of
professionals from the field of audio-video media, it could even be short video
films or stories. The copyright of the research output will vest in Government
of India who may publish the research output and /or may use it in any other
way for the purpose of strengthening the working of the RTI regime in the
country. GOI may, however, upon request, permit the Fellow to use the output
for publication etc., if government itself does not publish / make use of the
output within one year.The research fellow is expected to
Details of
the four Fellowships:
Suggested
Areas of Study and Research Output: RTI fellowships would be granted for
researching any of following three themes relating to RTI with the objective of
contributing towards better understanding of the successes of RTI and/ or
constraints in its implementation and how implementation of the Act could be
strengthened?
I.
Study of compliance of Section-4 by Public Authority (1
Fellowship to be awarded)
II.
Study of effectiveness of First Appeal Process (1
Fellowship to be awarded); and
III. Providing policy addressing based on the contents of RTI
applications/ft appeals (2 Fellowships to be awarded)
Compensation:
Each selected
Fellow will receive a total stipend of Rs2.00 lakh (subject to tax deduction at
source) including a grant of upto Rs50,000 for books, research material,
travel, printing, production of creatives etc on production of actual bills. No
other remuneration including stay/ accommodation will be admissible.
The
applications may be submitted as per the guidelines for RTI fellowship, 2016
(copy enclosed) at the following address; Room No.281, Under Secretary (IR),
DOPT, North Block, New Delhi-110001 3. The last date for receiving fellowship
applications is 7thNovember, 2016. Applications received upto 5:30 PM, 7 th
November, 2016 only will be considered. Five sets of the application with
enclosures in the enclosed proforma may be sent by post to Under Secretary
(IR), Department of Personnel and Training, Government of India, North Block,
New Delhi- 110001.
It will be
good if meritorious candidates apply for this fellowship in order that the
reality check of RTI Act is more comprehensive and credible.
.JPG)
.JPG)
