The
Hindu: Jaipur: Saturday, September 14, 2019.
In
a first for a State, citizens can access details pertaining to 13 departments.
In
a pioneering step, the first-ever public information portal was launched in
Rajasthan on Friday promising to provide information about government
authorities and departments suo motu to the public in the true spirit of the
Right To Information Act. The portal has brought yet another distinction to
Rajasthan, where the RTI movement had started in 1990s.
Chief
Minister Ashok Gehlot inaugurated the portal at B.M. Birla Auditorium here in
the presence of former Chief Information Commissioner Wajahat Habibullah,
former Law Commission chairman Justice A.P. Shah and a galaxy of RTI activists,
including Magsaysay Award winner Aruna Roy.
The
State government has collaborated with the civil society groups to develop the
portal, the first of its kind in the country, initially giving information
pertaining to 13 departments on a single platform. With different sections
divided into districts, blocks and panchayats, the portal empowers the common
people with access to useful information.
In
his inaugural address, Mr. Gehlot said the new web portal, named the Jan
Soochna Portal-2019, would ensure compliance with Section 4(2) of the RTI Act
mandating the public authorities to disclose information in the public domain,
so that the people need not file applications under the law to obtain
information. “I have a sentimental attachment with the RTI Act... I attended
the first dharna seeking this right 20 years ago,” he said.
In
a veiled reference to the RTI Amendment Bill passed by the Parliament recently,
Mr. Gehlot said attempts to weaken the statute would only erode the resolve to
bring transparency and accountability in administration. “We will not let this
happen and will never allow this path-breaking law to lose its teeth. This
portal displays our government's resolve for strict enforcement of RTI Act.”
Ms.
Roy said the portal would eventually turn out to be an effective medium for
“digital dialogue” with the people as well as a strong instrument for ensuring
transparency in governance. She applauded the State government's action to
combine technology, justice and information and said the civil society would
take the RTI movement to the masses.
The
State government will set up information kiosks in village panchayats and
self-service e-mitra centres in the towns to enable the people to access the
information useful for them. Initially, the information pertaining to 13
government departments such as the number of beneficiaries of schemes, works
undertaken in different areas, land records and social security pensions will
be available on the portal.
A
message of Congress president and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi was also
telecast on the occasion. Ms. Gandhi praised the initiative and expressed the
hope that it would strengthen the spirit of the RTI Act and inspire other
States to follow suit.
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