Hindustan Times: Chandigarh: Thursday, 28 May 2026.
As per the information, the panchayat department emerged as the biggest defaulter with pending penalties of over ₹1,34,86,833, followed by the urban local bodies department with over 80.96 lakh
Even as the Haryana
government takes strict measures to recover penalties from 1,726 state public
information officers (SPIOs) across 16 departments for not providing
information under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, a report from the Haryana
Lokayukta has revealed that nearly ₹2.95 crore in imposed penalties
remains unrecovered.
The report, in the response of a complaint filed by RTI activist PP Kapoor, who alleged that despite penalties being imposed by the Haryana State Information Commission, many officers neither deposited the amount nor faced effective recovery proceedings, even as the state government has issued directions in February this year for the recovery of the penalties from the salaries of the errant SPIOs.
As per the information, the panchayat department emerged as the biggest defaulter with pending penalties of over ₹1,34,86,833, followed by the urban local bodies department with over 80.96 lakh, followed by the education department with over ₹22.77 lakh, registrar cooperative societies with ₹19.99 lakh, revenue department with ₹14.76 lakh, urban estate department with ₹13.08 lakh, and Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP) with ₹10.94 lakh.
As per the RTI reply, the Lokayukta proceedings noted that despite earlier communications issued by the Haryana chief secretary in 2019 and 2020 directing recovery of penalties, the amount remained largely unpaid for years.
On the directions of the lokayukta, the state government formulated a proper mechanism for recovery of penalties from defaulting officers. Following this, the state government issued fresh directions on February 16 this year, mandating recovery directly from salaries or pensions of defaulting SPIOs through drawing and disbursing officers (DDOs).
Under the new recovery structure, Class-A officers will face deductions of ₹10,000 per month from salary or ₹5,000 from pension, while Class-B officers will pay ₹7,000, and Class-C officers ₹4,000 per month until full recovery of penalties. In cases where an officer has died, the penalty amount will be waived.
The report also revealed that penalties imposed on serving sarpanches would be recovered at the rate of ₹3,000 per month from their honorarium, while recovery proceedings against former sarpanches could be initiated through deputy commissioners under revenue laws.
According to Kapoor, the lokayukta report reveals that the fresh mechanism has started showing results, and the state government has so far recovered ₹12,48,876 from defaulting officers after issuance of the February 2026 directions.
Closing the complaint, lokayukta justice Hari Pal Verma recommended that the names of officers against whom RTI penalties remain pending should be uploaded on government websites. The report also directed the State Information Commission to submit quarterly progress reports regarding defaulting officers to their respective department heads.
As per the information, the panchayat department emerged as the biggest defaulter with pending penalties of over ₹1,34,86,833, followed by the urban local bodies department with over 80.96 lakh
The report, in the response of a complaint filed by RTI activist PP Kapoor, who alleged that despite penalties being imposed by the Haryana State Information Commission, many officers neither deposited the amount nor faced effective recovery proceedings, even as the state government has issued directions in February this year for the recovery of the penalties from the salaries of the errant SPIOs.
As per the information, the panchayat department emerged as the biggest defaulter with pending penalties of over ₹1,34,86,833, followed by the urban local bodies department with over 80.96 lakh, followed by the education department with over ₹22.77 lakh, registrar cooperative societies with ₹19.99 lakh, revenue department with ₹14.76 lakh, urban estate department with ₹13.08 lakh, and Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP) with ₹10.94 lakh.
As per the RTI reply, the Lokayukta proceedings noted that despite earlier communications issued by the Haryana chief secretary in 2019 and 2020 directing recovery of penalties, the amount remained largely unpaid for years.
On the directions of the lokayukta, the state government formulated a proper mechanism for recovery of penalties from defaulting officers. Following this, the state government issued fresh directions on February 16 this year, mandating recovery directly from salaries or pensions of defaulting SPIOs through drawing and disbursing officers (DDOs).
Under the new recovery structure, Class-A officers will face deductions of ₹10,000 per month from salary or ₹5,000 from pension, while Class-B officers will pay ₹7,000, and Class-C officers ₹4,000 per month until full recovery of penalties. In cases where an officer has died, the penalty amount will be waived.
The report also revealed that penalties imposed on serving sarpanches would be recovered at the rate of ₹3,000 per month from their honorarium, while recovery proceedings against former sarpanches could be initiated through deputy commissioners under revenue laws.
According to Kapoor, the lokayukta report reveals that the fresh mechanism has started showing results, and the state government has so far recovered ₹12,48,876 from defaulting officers after issuance of the February 2026 directions.
Closing the complaint, lokayukta justice Hari Pal Verma recommended that the names of officers against whom RTI penalties remain pending should be uploaded on government websites. The report also directed the State Information Commission to submit quarterly progress reports regarding defaulting officers to their respective department heads.
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