Times of India: Ahmedabad: Monday, March 24, 2025.
Three departments of the state govt home, revenue, and urban development accounted for a majority of applications made under the Right to Information (RTI) Act in the year 2023-24, according to a report of the Gujarat Information Commission (GIC) tabled in the ongoing assembly session.
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Of the total 1,31,875
applications received by all departments during the year, 91,551 applications
(69.42%) sought information about the services and operations of the home,
revenue and urban development departments. Almost a third of all applications (30.53%)
pertained to the home department, 19.54% applications pertained to the revenue
department and 19.35% applications were made to the urban development
department.
Besides, the GIC received a total of 7,082 appeals and complaints, out of which 7,051 cases were resolved. In 118 cases, penalties were imposed by the commission, the report said. Of these, 6,077 (86.19%) were appeals, while 974 (13.81%) were complaints. Financial penalties amounting to Rs 8.84 lakh were imposed during the year on public information officers (PIOs) of various departments.
The number of RTI applications filed in 2023-24 increased by 8.54% compared to the previous year. In 2022-23, 1,21,490 applications were made under the RTI Act, which increased to 1,31,875 in the year 2023-24. The report said that in 2023-24, no orders were issued under the RTI Act for compensation to complainants, and no recommendations for departmental inquiries were made.
The overall rejection rate of applications by various departments and their subordinate authorities was 5.23%. However, departments such as law (17.95%), finance (16.27%) and general administration (11.97%) had higher rejection rates compared to other departments of the state govt.
Three departments of the state govt home, revenue, and urban development accounted for a majority of applications made under the Right to Information (RTI) Act in the year 2023-24, according to a report of the Gujarat Information Commission (GIC) tabled in the ongoing assembly session.
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Besides, the GIC received a total of 7,082 appeals and complaints, out of which 7,051 cases were resolved. In 118 cases, penalties were imposed by the commission, the report said. Of these, 6,077 (86.19%) were appeals, while 974 (13.81%) were complaints. Financial penalties amounting to Rs 8.84 lakh were imposed during the year on public information officers (PIOs) of various departments.
The number of RTI applications filed in 2023-24 increased by 8.54% compared to the previous year. In 2022-23, 1,21,490 applications were made under the RTI Act, which increased to 1,31,875 in the year 2023-24. The report said that in 2023-24, no orders were issued under the RTI Act for compensation to complainants, and no recommendations for departmental inquiries were made.
The overall rejection rate of applications by various departments and their subordinate authorities was 5.23%. However, departments such as law (17.95%), finance (16.27%) and general administration (11.97%) had higher rejection rates compared to other departments of the state govt.
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