Manorama Online: Kannur: Sunday, June 02, 2019.
The Kerala Information Commissioner has ordered action against information ofcers attached with the Kannur district collectorate and district medical ofce for the delay in responding to RTI queries. The order is to slap a ne of Rs 250 per day for the delayed period to a maximum total amount of Rs 25,000.
The State Information Commission also directed that the ne should be levied on the information officer of the Thalassery Cooperative Engineering College. The commission also asked the department offcials concerned to expedite the process, which had been delayed citing many reason, of providing information to the RTI (Right to Information) applicants.
Orders were issued to the deputy collector of the Kannur collectorate, who gave information to an RTI applicant over phone, to provide the relevant data in writing to the applicant. ' The commission redressed 19 out of 20 complaints that were lodged from the district. State Information Commissioner Dr K L Vivekanandan said that offcials were not serious about many provisions of the RTI Act.
The commission has decided to take strict action against erring ofcials. Efforts are on to clear backlog of cases. Every member of the commission would look into 200 cases per month, Vivekanandan said.