Deccan Herald: Bengaluru: Wednesday,
05 August 2020.
In a
move that has come as a big relief for right to information (RTI) activists who
were worried over delay in hearing of second appeals, the Karnataka Information
Commission (KIC) has begun proceedings through video conference, where parties
can log in via WhatsApp.
Though
the KIC has 10 commissioners, hearing of cases had become a challenge during
Covid times.
The
commissioners held several meetings to come up with a modality to settle the
RTI appeals whose pending list was growing every day. It was decided to conduct
hearing via video conference.
“Appellants
can now log into the KIC website and submit their name, phone number and case
number. The commission will consider the case and send a link for them prior to
the hearing. They can log in via WhatsApp or a channel developed by Cisco,”
Chief Information Commissioner N C Srinivasa told DH.
He said
the commission has tested several tools before zeroing in on the two modes. “We
do not know how long Covid-19 will persist. During the meeting with
commissioners, it was decided to enable the KIC to work smoothly even in the
long-term scenario,” he said.
He said
the idea to include WhatsApp as an option was aimed at convenience. “Even those
who are not familiar with technology are usually familiar with WhatsApp. Even
otherwise, accessing the app is easy and can be done from any place with a little
help,” he said.
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