Good Practices relating to RTI
Implementation in India
Prepared for the Regional Workshop: “Towards More Open and Transparent Governance in South Asia”
(April 27-29, 2010, New Delhi)
By the
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION
I.P. ESTATE, RING ROAD, NEW DELHI
2
CONTENTS
1. Introduction
3-4
2. Background to the paper
4-5
3. Good Practices in Use of ICTs to strengthen the implementation of the RTI Act
5-22
4. Good Practices in Effective Use of the RTI Act to improve Access to marginalized population to specific government schemes
22-26
5. Good Practices in Implementation of suo-motu provisions
26-33
6. Good Practices adopted by Information Commissions
33-38
7. Good Practices implemented by Government to make information available to the people and for generating awareness
38-47
8. Conclusion
47-49
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Introduction
Right to Information (RTI) is a fundamental human right; it refers to the right of
every citizen to access information held by or under the control of public
authorities. It is also the launching point for the realization of other human rights:
civil and political rights such as the right to life and liberty, freedom of expression,
and equality before the law; and economic, social and cultural rights such as right
to adequate food, right to water, right to highest attainable standard of health,
right to education.
In India, the RTI (Right to Information) Act came into being in 2005; a landmark
event that made the governance processes of the country accessible to its
citizens. The Act is based on the principle that all government information is the
property of people. It takes democracy to the grass root level and is also a step
towards ensuring participatory governance in the country.
Some of the areas of impact of this Act are seen below:
In the political sphere, it contributes to the ability of citizens to become aware of
and involved in the activities of government. Overall, this raises the level of
political debate and leads to a more productive process of policymaking.
In the economic sphere, transparency increases efficiency by making the
investment climate more reliable and allowing capital to better calculate where
and when it can best be invested.
In the sphere of public administration, transparency improves the decision
making of public servants by making them more responsive and accountable to
the public and controls corruption by making it more difficult to hide illegal
agreements and action. It also improves the legitimacy and trust in government in
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the eyes of the people, allowing for the more effective implementation of public
policies.1
It can be said that information is the basis of democracy. If people do not know
what is happening in their society, if the actions of those who rule them are
hidden, then they cannot take a meaningful part in the affairs of the society.
Access to information not only promotes openness, transparency and
accountability in administration, but also facilitates active participation of people
in the democratic governance process.
This legislation provides opportunities to Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), as
well as the media to be involved in governance and social transformation
processes by using the Act as a method to monitor, review and evaluate
Government policies, programmes and schemes. In this manner, both the media
and CSOs can infuse greater transparency and accountability in the
administration of developmental programmes and arrest the abuse of power and
misuse of public resources.2
Background to the paper
As part of the activities undertaken under the Governance Partnership Facility’s
grant in support of Right to Information (RTI) regimes across the South Asia
Region (SAR), a Regional Workshop bringing together key RTI stakeholders
from countries in the region is being organized in New Delhi (India) on April 27-
29, 2010. The purpose of the Regional Workshop is to build consensus and to
promote the exchange of information and experiences between different
countries in SAR on RTI legislation and implementation issues, with the ultimate
goal of setting a common agenda to support the advancement of RTI at the
regional and country levels.
1 Srinivas Madhav 2 Internet report on CGG meeting/2007
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The Regional Workshop will bring together country delegations from India,
Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Bhutan, with India as
host.
This paper compiles the good practices in India, at both Central and state levels
relating to some of the RTI Act’s key issues. This paper has been commissioned
with the purpose of contributing to the upcoming Regional Conference;
accordingly, the paper describes good practices related to RTI implementation
focusing on the following key aspects:
(a) the use of Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) to strengthen the
implementation of the RTI Act;
(b) effective use of the RTI Act to improve access of marginalized population to specific government schemes - specifically NREGA and PDS;
(c) the implementation of suo motu provisions;
(d) appeals case management, strategic plans and mechanisms by Information Commissions; and
(e) monitoring and reporting of the RTI Act implementation, the roles of Information Commissions and government agencies.
I Use of Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) to strengthen the implementation of the RTI
IT Initiatives of the Andhra Pradesh Information Commission (APIC), URL:
www.apic.gov.in 3
Model Website: The APIC has a well-designed, comprehensive and functional
website. It contains information about role and responsibilities of commissioners,
distribution of work among commissioners, activities undertaken by the
commissioners, procedure for request for information, frequently asked
3 Report of National Sub Committee of Central Information Commission, July 2008, pp 13-14, APIC Annual Report 2008, p. 10-11; APIC Annual Report 2007, p. 9-10
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questions, success stories, decisions on appeals, search facility, directory of all
public authorities in Andhra Pradesh with the details of PIOs, APIOs and
Appellate Authorities, links to other SICs, CIC and RTI related web sites. This
website is developed and maintained by CGG.
Internal Tracking of Appeals & Complaints: APIC has implemented an internal
file tracking system. From 01.11.2006 onwards “File Tracking System” has been
introduced in which all the tappal received at Reception / Inward level are being
entered online in the proformae prescribed in the computer through auto
generated tappal numbering system and acknowledgement slip is being issued
instantly across the table to whoever present their applications in person in the
office. The status of the cases is also being updated from time to time and after
disposal of the case, the final result in the form of order is also being placed in
the File Tracking System, so that the applicant can know the status of his case
and final order passed from the click of the button.
As and when an appeal or complaint is received in the commission either in
person or through e-mail the details are keyed into the system and a unique
number is given by the system to that appeal or complaint which will be passed
on to the citizen. At each stage the concerned authorities will be updating the
status of the appeal. This number can be used by the citizen to know the status
of the appeal, date of hearing, decision etc. This system developed by CGG also
generates all the required reports for the commission.
The system generates a register for each Commissioner, giving the month-wise
status of the applications received. Internally the staff of Commissioners process
the appeals/complaints received and update the status regularly. This status is
then made available to the enquirer through sms.
The internal tracking system provides various types of MIS reports for the
commissions such as:
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• Commissioners wise
• Yearly and Monthly reports
• Register book for Commission
It helps in the generation of an updated cause list; when an application is posted
for hearing, the ICs update the status. To know when an application is posted for
hearing, the user has to select the period. Accordingly, the details, both
Commissioner-wise and date- wise is displayed with time of hearing.
Annual/Quarterly reporting system: APIC, with the help of CGG, has also
enabled an online reporting system on RTI tracking to facilitate the commission
to prepare the Annual Report. District level officer under each Head of
Department have to collect the data about number of RTI application and their
status from PIOs of the public authorities under his jurisdiction and reports to the
system. The system aggregates the data at HOD, secretariat Dept and state
level. This system also provides analysis of rejected applications at various
levels.
Status of Appeals through SMS: The Andhra Pradesh Information Commission
in association with the Centre for Good Governance, Hyderabad has designed
and developed the system of ‘Status through SMS’. CGG has enabled citizens
to know the status of appeals through SMS facility. Citizens who have pending
appeals or complaints with the SIC can know the status of such
appeals/complaints by simply sending an SMS to APIC on a particular mobile
number citing the appeal number and the year. A reply SMS indicating the status
of the appeal/complaint will be received by the citizen within 2 minutes. Public
can know the status of appeal/complaint filed in A.P. Information Commission
instantly through this system. Whenever an applicant files an appeal/complaint
with the commission, he is given an acknowledgement with a unique_id year-
wise. The applicant uses this id for tracking the status of his application on
mobile. The process is “SMS: APIC>Space>Regd No>space>Year> to 99896
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51152”. System will receive the SMS and search the records in the database and
then give an instant return status through SMS on computer generated auto
response. The SMS modem then sends the status message to the applicants
through a return SMS, after receiving the appropriate answer from the server.
The response to the applicant is received as either of the following:
“Under process” - When the application is in process;
“Disposed Off” - When the application is disposed;
“Taken on file for Hearing” – When the application is posted for hearing by the
IC.
Through this facility, the status of any complaint or appeal filed before the
Commission could be known, round the clock 24 x 7 without any human
interface. This is a pioneering effort and has been operationalised for the first
time in the State of A.P. The Central Information Commission, Govt. of India has
strongly recommended such practice and facility to be emulated throughout the
Country. Between March 2008 to April 2009 319 people used this SMS service.
(APIC 3rd Annual Report 2008 pp. 177-183)
The above IT initiatives has enabled Andhra Pradesh Information Commission to
cover the entire spectrum of the activities of commission and help them in
disseminating the decisions status of appeals and complaints, status of RTI
applications in the state, preparation of annual report. Implementation of these
systems will help the Information Commissions in implementing section 4(1)(a)
since most of the information held by them will be in digitized format.
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IT Initiatives of the Punjab State Information Commission (APIC) url:
www.infocommpunjab.com4
The State Information Commission, Punjab has developed and adopted an
information system in consultation with National Informatics Centre (NIC), Punjab
and Technorite Consultants, Mohali, Punjab. To enable the storage and retrieval
of huge volumes of information, a three-tier system was developed and adopted.
Local Area Network (LAN): This is a proprietary system connecting workstations
and personal computers of various functionaries of the Commission. The LAN is
capable of transmitting data at very fast rates, much faster than data can be
transmitted over a telephone line and many users can share data simultaneously.
Management Information Software (INCOMS): This system can generate the
following reports:
Daily Case Register/ Cases registered in a period
Allocation of cases to various benches
Issue of Hearing Notice
Details of cases in progress
Cause List
Status/History of a Case
Department-wise Distribution of Cases
Public Authority-wise Distribution
Website: The Punjab State Information Commission was possibly the first State
Commission in the country to launch its functional website on 11th May, 2006. It
contains information on RTI Act, Punjab State Government Rules and Forms,
cause lists and MIS, like number of appeals registered, and disposed of in the
4Report of National Sub Committee of Central Information Commission, July 2008, pp 13-14
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Information Commission on a monthly basis. All the orders given by the
Commission are also available on the web. Facility to search the orders is also
provided.
Internal Tracking of Appeals: The Punjab State Information Commission has
implemented a client-server based IT system for tracking the appeals filed in the
Commission. As and when an appeal is received in the Commission a Diary
number is given to the applicant and at the end of the day all these details are
keyed into the system and a unique number is given by the system to each
appeal or complaint. At the end of day after the hearings the status of appeals
are being updated. This system generates all the required reports for the
Commission.
Access to information through the Chhattisgarh E-Panchayat Project2
Chhattisgarh has an e-Panchayat project which connects all 146 Janpad
Panchayats and 16 Zila Panchayats in order to promote more effective
monitoring of the implementation of rural development schemes, including
monitoring finances. Accordingly, computer infrastructure is supposed to have
been provided at each Janpad Panchayat and Zila Panchayat. The Chief Minister
inaugurated the project on 26 January 2005. This project is being carried out in
collaboration with the Chhattisgarh Directorate of Panchayats and National
Informatics Centre (NIC) and NICSI. The expected benefits from this project
include:
Compilation of basic information of Gram Panchayats facilitating
enhanced decision-making;
2 Sohini Paul & Charmaine Rodrigues, The Right to Information and PRIs: Chhatisgarh as a case study, CHRI, 2006. For more information visit the website of the E-Panchayat Project at: http://epanchayat.cg.nic.in.
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Collection and compilation of data regarding resources, financial
resources and income sources of Gram Panchayats;
Compilation of Gram Panchayat funds received through government aid,
people’s participation and donations;
On-line monitoring of rural development schemes down to panchayat
level;
On-line monitoring of beneficiary schemes, employment generation
schemes and other government schemes;
Compilation of data regarding work schemes, administrative management
and accounts.
Using the telephone to make information accessible
Project "JAANKARI"-A Facilitation Centre Approach5
Visualizing the ramifications of the RTI Act for people’s empowerment and its
effectiveness in reduction of corrupt practices in government offices, which result
mostly due to holding of information and avoiding transparency, the State
Government of Bihar decided to make provision of RTI Act more broad based
and easily accessible to ordinary people. It was decided that ICT (Information,
Communication and Technology) be innovatively and effectively employed for
expanding the base of the RTI access and that a Facilitation Centre called
"JAANKARI" for RTI be set up, for the first time in India. Inputs from "Parivartan"
and Sri Arvind Kejriwal helped in better formulation of the Project.
It is for the first time that a Facilitation Centre has been established to benefit the
citizens of the state under the provisions of Right to Information. This is a unique
experiment, first of its kind in India, and is aimed at “information empowerment”
5Chanchal Kumar, “Project Report on Project ‘JAANKAARI’ An ICT Initiative through Facilitation”, http://cic.gov.in/.
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of the people. Various technology issues and RTI knowledge base issues are
continuously being handled to ensure quality and coverage. To overcome the
digital divide and illiteracy incapabilities, the Government of Bihar has utilized the
most usual of all communication i.e. voice communication over phone line. Ease
of Communication is the key to this project’s success. Now all the relevant
information is a phone call away. This innovate use of RTI Act will also promote
e-governance by disseminating useful information among the masses, especially
the disadvantaged sections. “JAANKARI” Facilitation Centre” Project is a win-win
situation to citizens, government and BSNL.
Bihar Government's RTI Facilitation Centre “JAANKARI” for filing RTI application
(RTI application filing dial number (RAN) 155311) with the concerned State
government Department works on premium rate services of BSNL. The system is
designed to enable a citizen wishing to file an application for seeking any
information under RTI Act, without any hassles of physical movement for
purchase of postal order (for the requisite RTI application fee of Rs.10/-) and
going to the designated RTI Officer of the concerned department. The primary
and mandatory requirement was to charge RTI application fee (Rs.10/-) from the
citizen without physical transaction of money. This could be fulfilled with the help
of BSNL Premium Rate Services, by paying at a premium rate i.e. higher than
the normal Call tariff. Later the Premium Service Provider gets his share of
revenue from BSNL consolidated over a month. Besides premium rate call
number, another five digit number dial (155310) for help line on normal tariff was
also made available for general enquiry on RTI and application status etc. Both
these numbers have been widely publicized for public knowledge and
consumption. During the two years of its existence, the call centre received
22,600 calls of which 7,070 were to submit applications under RTI, 3016 calls for
filing first appeal and 1,400 calls for filing second appeals before the state
information commission.
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The operation has been outsourced to a government neutral agency. The
Facilitation Centre executives are not from government and hence unbiased. The
Facilitation Centre executives were trained and sensitized. They are to receive
calls and convert the voice demands into "electronic format", compatible with the
RTI Act. Since issues involved varied with each request and it was difficult to
pinpoint the exact PIOs dealing with the issue, one senior administrative officer is
also made available to the Facilitation centre to help in co-ordinating with PIOs
and departmental heads. The official is well versed with the governmental system
and its "Rules of Executive Business" which assigns specific work to a
department and also mentions its delegated powers.
The fully equipped Facilitation Centre for RTI was pre-tested first and then
inaugurated by the Hon’ able Chief Minister on 29th January 2007. The
Facilitation Centre is operational since then on all working days. 30 Callers can
be heard and assisted on RTI Application Number (RAN) line at a time. RTI Help-
line Number (RHN) is being effectively manned for rendering all assistance on
RTI matters.
Procedures for filing “Request for Information”:
The Government after realizing a Facilitation Centre, advertised two
phone numbers to the public. One of the numbers is RTI Help-line Number
(RHN) and the other number is RTI Application Number (RAN).
RHN is an ordinary number with hunting line facility with normal Call
charges. If any citizen wants to get any help about how to use RTI, he can
use this number.
When a person calls up RAN, he is asked to give his name, address, what
information does he want and from which department does he want that
information. This conversation is voice recorded and also typed on
computer simultaneously by the Facilitation Centre executive receiving the
call request.
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If the citizen does not know the department concerned, then the
Facilitation Centre staff will help him identity it. But in some rare cases,
even the Facilitation Centre staff would not know about the exact
department. To deal with such cases, the Government has assigned a
government official to oversee the operation-centre. The official knows the
functioning of each department and the relevant issues connected with it.
So, he can supervise the operations at the centre and can facilitate in
ascertaining the correct PIO/APIOs.
Many ordinary citizens may not even know what types of information to
ask for. They would just know their problems. Facilitation Centre staff are
trained to help and deal with such cases. A good amount of handholding is
required to help the not-so-literate people. A patient, effective
conversation with a caller results in generation of one application.
Once an RTI application has thus been filled, the Facilitation center (FC)
will confirm its contents with the caller again & then take two copies of it
and send the first copy to the applicant. Each of these generated
applications will have a unique reference number, which will be assigned
by the computer S/W, itself. This reference number can be quoted on the
helpline to ask for the application's content (with proper mechanism to
respect one's privacy and address the security issues).
The Second copy will be sent to the concerned PIO by one of the following
methods :
If the PIO has access to e-mail, it will be sent through e-mail. This
is the quickest and cheapest way to transmit application.
If he does not have access to e-mail, the application will be faxed to
him.
If the neither has access to e-mail nor to the fax, it will be sent to
him by post.
The PIO will have 35 days (from the date of receipt of application in CC) to
provide information. During this period, the PIO should prepare
information and send it to the applicant directly.
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The Facilitation Centre will have provisions to remind the PIO on 34th day,
as delay in reply without adequate reasons may invite penal action from
the appellate authority or the information commission.
If applicant has not received the information or is not satisfied with the
information received, he can call up the Facilitation Centre again and
express his dissatisfaction after telling his reference no.
His dissatisfaction will be voice recorded and typed. This will become his
first appeal, which would be forwarded to the first appellate authority in the
same manner as the RTI application was done in the first place, with a
reference number.
The first appellate authority will deal with the appeal as he normally does.
The results will be communicated to the applicant directly.
If the applicant is not satisfied with the first appellate order, he can
similarly file his second, appeal. This will be submitted to State Information
Commission.
Both first and second appeal will have the requisite charges of RAN i.e,
Rs.10/per Facilitation. Suitable amendments were made in the Rule by the
state government to make similar fee for 1st and 2nd appeal.
Advantages to Citizens:
1. Sitting at home-Power of information is just a phone call away. Project
application was designed after wide consultations. Citizen is the focus of the
initiative,
2. No hassles of physical movement to PIO Office for filing RTI application,
3. Money saved by way of travel time/lost as well as for making drafts/Postal
order from Bank and Post offices,
4. Government bears the cost of the Facilitation Centre, cost of transmitting
the application to the concerned PIOs as well as substantial cost on
providing the premium call service,
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5. The Project keeps in mind differences in local culture when seeking to
engage citizens,
6. Even writing the application is done by Facilitation Centre executive,
7. Citizen's handicap arising out of linguistic variations can also be overcome
by the Facilitation Centre executives, who would screen and do the
necessary handholding,
8. No need to know the dynamic “Rules of Executive Business” of the
government i.e. which issue is to be referred to which department.
Advantage to Government:
1. Empowerment of common man, resulting in better compliance,
2. Unique application of a combination of state of the art communication
technologies for providing facilitation to citizen,
3. Man-hour saving for collection of RTI application in individual Departments
by centralizing it at The Facilitation Centre,
4. "JAANKARI"-first device of its kind in the country, announces the positive
intentions of the government loud and clear,
5. Introduces transparency in government,
6. Creates peer pressure and enabling environment for the government's
delivery system,
7. Project data analysis also indicates area of improvement as well as sectors
demanding state intervention.
Advantage to BSNL:
1. Opportunity to exploit technology for public facilitation and empowerment,
2. Additional source of Revenue in terms of revenue sharing,
3. Additional popularity among public.
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Bihar wins national e-governance award for RTI initiative
Bihar has won the national e-governance award 2008-09 for ’Jankari’, a Bihar
government initiative to empower people with information under RTI over
telephone. 6The award was given to the Bihar government’s unique project,
Jankari Call Centre under Right to Information Act (RTI), on February 12, 2010 at
the national conference on e-governance in Goa. The operators receiving the
calls in call centres draft the applications under RTI and send it to the public
authorities for providing requisite information to applicants. The award was given
by the Department of Administrative Reforms under Ministry of Personnel, New
Delhi.
Bihar helpline 7
Bihar has also launched a new helpline in January 2009, by using which people
can file complaints against the government officials who harass them for seeking
information using the RTI tool. CM Nitish Kumar dedicated the helpline (0612-
2219435) for public use. The CM himself made the first complaint using the
helpline against Rajnagar block supply officer in Madhubani district. "The CM
secretariat has received complaint from one Dhirendra Mahto of Karaiya
Panchayat in which the complainant claimed that an FIR was lodged against him
with the Rajnagar police station in August this year after he tried to seek some
information about public distribution system from the block supply officer," Nitish
informed the person attending the call on the newly launched helpline and asked
the call attendant to inform his secretary about the action taken. He immediately
got a complaint number (0001). Incidentally, all such complaints received would
be monitored directly by the state home secretary and DGP and emphasis would
6 Shweta Singh, Bihar wins national e-governance award for RTI initiative, January 29, 2009, http://jaibihar.com/bihar-wins-national-award-for-e-governance/20092922.html 7 Sanjeev Kumar Verma, State launches helpline to file RTI complaint ,TNN, Nov 13, 2009, 07.43am IST http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/patna/State-launches-helpline-to-file-RTI-complaint/articleshow/5224667.cms
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be to expedite the complaint redressal. "Officials found guilty of harassing
applicants would be dealt with sternly and, if needed, the government would not
hesitate to dismiss such officials from the service," Nitish told the gathering which
responded with thunderous applause. Nitish also launched the Phase-II of
Jaankari which would allow applicants to file RTI applications using e-mail. For
this, one needs to open the website biharonline.gov.in/rti in which one would get
an icon for filing RTI application through e-mail.
RTI Call Centre in Bangalore – Manjunath Trust8
The RTI call center in Bangalore which is maintained by Manjunath Trust is
another example where the telephone has proved to be a handy tool for the
speedy receipt and despatch of information relating to RTI. The number of this
national help line is 080- 666- 00- 999 (toll free only in Bangalore, for rest of
India, STD rates are charged). This center has five lines which is run by a
professional call center. The professional call-handlers who manage the calls
have been trained by Parivartan. The details of the information asked for by a
person are recorded immediately by the call center professionals and a daily
document can be accessed, if required. For those questions, which cannot be
answered by the call center professional, a technical expert on RTI is also
available.
A caller can ask for information related to RTI Act 2005, State rules of Karnataka,
list of Public Information Officers and appellate bodies in Karnataka, procedural
details of application and appeal, name and addresses of RTI activists from all
over India. The call center receives over 150-200 calls per day.
8 Information accessed from PRIA report – ‘Tracking RTI in 8 States’, 2007
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Haryana -Helpline for RTI and NREGS9
The Haryana Government, which has emerged as the fourth best e-governed
state in the country has added another facility for the benefit of those seeking
information under the Right to Information (RTI) Act and the National Rural
Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) Act. Keeping in mind the difficulties of
the rural poor, the government decided to create a helpline for RTI and NREGS
will empower villagers to obtain the required information without hassles.
While the helpline for NREGS has become operative earlier, the RTI helpline has
become operational in March 2010. The panchayat and village development
department has launched the toll-free helpline number for NREGS —
18001802023. Villagers from any part of the state can register their complaints or
seek information about NREGS with the help of this number.
The NREGS helpline will keep a record of the complaint. A code number of the
complaint will be given to the information seeker. The helpline will facilitate
passing of the required information to the Government personnel concerned, the
BDO or the panchayat officer. For providing information under the RTI Act, a 24-
hour helpline, separate counters at e-Disha centres and post offices will be set
up. HARTRON has prepared a detailed action plan about providing information to
the consumers.
The RTI helpline will be manned by a call centre in the state. A team of qualified
personnel, having full knowledge of governance and procedures, will be given a
toll-free number with eight to 10 phone lines. Sources with HARTRON say the
system will have an automotive voice recording system (AVR) and the call will be
9 Besides helpline, separate counters at e-Disha centres and post offices planned, http://www.indianexpress.com/news/no...aryana/402928/; http://www.rtiindia.org/forum/11405-now-helpline-right-information-haryana.html
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attended by an employee of the centre. The NGOs in the state have welcomed
the government’s move to facilitate information under the RTI and the NREGS.
RTI helpline in Gujarat10
On May 12, 2006, Mahiti Adhikar Gujarat Pahel (MAGP), a group committed to
spreading awareness about RTI, launched a helpline in Gujarat to facilitate easy
access to information and help with consumer queries about RTI. As it celebrates
its third anniversary, the helpline has answered 38,269 phone calls on RTI-
related issues so far. The number of calls that the RTI helpline received indicate
that farmers seem to be the maximum users of Right to Information Act. Pankti
Jog, coordinator, MAGP, said, "Rural people know more about RTI. We also
receive more queries from them as compared to the urban population. Panchayat
members too use the helpline to get answer to their queries. In fact, the helpline
has been so successful that even public information officer (PIO) and appellate
organisations contact us to ensure transparency in processing the applications."
MAGP conducted an analysis of the calls which showed that a major part of calls
involved complaints about receiving partial or misleading information (15%),
followed closely by those about receiving information after the stipulated period
of 30 days (12%). Other complaints included applications being rejected,
applicants being threatened and information denied by the PIO.
An analysis of people calling up the helpline revealed that most of them were
farmers who had questions related to their land. Teachers, public information
officers, differently-abled people, social workers and small entrepreneurs also
formed a sizeable number of callers. This study shows that while the RTI helpline
has been largely successful in spreading awareness, a lot still needs to be done
10 RTI helpline completes 3 years today, TNN, May 12, 2009, 03.43am ISThttp://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/RTI-helpline-completes-3-years-today/articleshow/4511403.cms
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to increase understanding of the service and to ensure honest and speedy
delivery of information.
RTI Helpline at DU11
There is help at hand for Delhi University (DU) students keen on unearthing facts
through Right to Information (RTI) Act. And it's just a phone call away. Any
queries about the Act and its use can now be addressed by a helpline launched
for DU students. RTI is a popular tool to seek information on marksheets,
examination and the moderation system. The helpline was launched by the YTF.
At DU, students have quite often used it to get information that the administration
does not otherwise provide. Through the helpline, the YTF aims to make the
process of filing an RTI query simpler. Apart from providing the names of the
concerned Public Information Officers (PIOs) in different DU colleges and
information on how to file a query, the helpline will also help students draft
questions.
Multiple channels to file RTI pleas12
Filing a Right to Information (RTI) application may no longer mean multiple trips
to government offices and suffering the indifferent attitude of babus. A
government report has outlined multiple channels for acceptance of RTI
applications like post offices, common service centres, RTI portal and call centre
to streamline the process of providing information to people. If recommendations
are accepted, RTI pleas could be filed at a service centre or in comfort of home
even as one finishes up household chores.
11 DU students get RTI helpline, Fri, Jan 22 11:00 AM, http://in.news.yahoo.com/32/20100122/1053/tnl-du-students-get-rti-helpline.html 12 Himanshi Dhawan, Multiple channels to file RTI pleas, TNN, Jul 16, 2009, 04.31am IST http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Multiple-channels-to-file-RTI-pleas/articleshow/4782568.cms
22
Common service centres (CSCs) are single window outlets for many government
services that are being opened under National e-Governance Plan. The scheme
envisages 1 lakh CSCs or approximately 1 CSC for 6 villages that will facilitate
citizens with RTI applications. The report ‘Understanding the key issues and
constraints in implementing RTI Act’ prepared by Pricewaterhouse Coopers in
association with IMRB has suggested that post offices in states be allowed to
accept applications. As done by states like Bihar and Haryana, the report has
urged the Centre to initiate a national level helpline and has urged setting up of
an RTI portal. The study suggested that Centre and states should earmark 1% of
their budget for implementation of these recommendations. The report has
suggested use of RTI complaint standard templates that will ensure quick and
reasoned orders and reduce margin for error.
II Good practices relating to the effective use of the RTI Act to improve access of marginalized populations to government schemes
The Right to Information Act is not the only law that gives a right of access to
information. Beyond the Right to Information Act, there are some stronger
provisions in other laws which promote transparency.
The PDS (Control) (Amendment) Order, 2004, which entered into force on 29
June 2004, enables citizens to directly seek information from a fair price shop
owner. Punishment for withholding information may extend up to three months
imprisonment.
Another historic law, the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act has built in
transparency prerequisites. The nodal Ministry goes one step ahead in facilitating
transparency by reducing time limit for disclosure of the records requested under
the Right to Information Act to just ‘seven days’ and further fees for obtaining
information to ‘photocopying costs’. It is a pleasant surprise to know that the
invocation of section 8(1) is not allowed at all.
23
The National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005(NREGA) Operational
Guidelines 2008, 3rd edition, Ministry of Rural Development. Para 11.1.2 states
as follows: Requests for copies of NREGS-related documents submitted under
NREGA should be complied with within seven days. No request should be
refused under any circumstances. In particular, no information should be withheld
by invoking Clause [section] 8 of the Right to Information Act. All NREGA-related
information is in the public domain.13
Using proactive disclosure to improve the Public Distribution System in Surguja District14 In October 1996, a programme was introduced to increase the transparency in
the public distribution system through public scrutiny of the distribution of
essential commodities like rice, sugar, wheat and kerosene oil supplied by fair-
price shops in Surguja district. All fair-price shops are required to maintain three
registers – a Stock Register, Sales Register and Ration Card Register. It is the
duty of the shop to prepare a copy of the register and get it certified by the lead
co-operative in the region.
In support of the transparency programme, copies of the registers are now made
available to the people at the tehsil office. Any resident can obtain a copy of the
register within 24 hours on payment of Rs 3. Before implementing the
programme, special Gram Sabhas were organised in all of Surguja district’s
Gram Panchayats, where public leaders and officials explained the merits of the
scheme to the villagers. In the very first month the programme was implemented,
it was reported that there were about 2,50,000 kilograms of stock unused in the
district and leakage to the black market was reduced. The Sarpanch has been
given the responsibility to ensure proper custody and maintenance of records
13 Srinivas Madhav 14 Chhattisgarh Infrastructure Development Corporation, “Chhattisgarh Vision 2010”, Raipur, referred in Sohini Paul & Charmaine Rodrigues The Right to Information and PRIs: Chhatisgarh as a case study, 2006, CHRI
24
and registers of the Gram Panchayat and to ensure that all the statements and
reports required are properly prepared.
Proactive disclosure about how panchayats implement rural development schemes The National Institute of Rural Development (NIRD) has released a publication,
“Implementation of Rural Development Programmes - Role of PRIs in the context
of the Right to Information Act”15, which is meant to provide information to locals
about how to access information from panchayats about all major rural
development schemes run by the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD). MoRD
implements a number of rural development and poverty alleviation programmes,
which support infrastructure in villages, offer employment and provide subsidised
food grains, shelter and drinking water to villagers. It is primarily the responsibility
of Panchayati Raj Institutions to implement these schemes. However, the
implementation role of Gram Sabhas and panchayats at village, block and district
levels in relation to these programmes is often not known by villagers, and in
many cases is not even known by elected panchayat members themselves. The
NIRD publication is intended to fill this information gap by disseminating
information about the role of panchayats (particularly the Gram Sabha) in the
implementation of rural development programmes. It is directed both at the public
and at elected panchayat members It also includes a chapter explaining the
salient features of the RTI Act.
Proactive Disclosure about the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) 200516
The Punjab Government initiated the process of giving jobs to the rural
unemployed youth under this scheme in 1,317 villages in Hoshiarpur district on 2
15referred in Sohini Paul & Charmaine Rodrigues, The Right to Information and PRIs: Chhatisgarh as a case study, CHRI, 2006. The publication can be obtained from NIRD - Address: Rajendranagar, Hyderabad – 500030; Website: www.nird.org.in. 16 referred in Sohini Paul & Charmaine Rodrigues, The Right to Information and PRIs: Punjab as a case study, CHRI, 2006
25
February 2006. On that day it was also discussed that mini secretariats would
be set up in each village which would be equipped with modern libraries and
digitisation of all panchayat records would be undertaken under this scheme.
Commitment to transparency and accountability runs throughout the NREGA,
which was enacted soon after the Right to Information Act 2005 became fully
operational throughout the country. There is a separate chapter on Transparency
and Accountability: Role of the State in the Operational Guidelines document.
The key points stated here are as follows:
Request for copies of REGS related documents submitted under NREGA
should be complied within seven days. All the documents are in public
domain and no information should be refused by invoking Section 8 of the
RTI Act.
Key documents related to NREGA should be proactively disclosed to the
public without waiting for anyone to ‘apply’ for them. A list of such
documents should be prepared by the State Employment Guarantee
Council, and updated from time to time. For the purposes of regular
monitoring and reviewing the implementation of this Act at the State level,
every state government shall constitute a State Employment Guarantee
Council. Whenever feasible, these documents should be made available
on the Internet.
Public access to key records and information must be ensured at all
levels. Some of these include: updated data on demand received;
registration; number of job cards issued; list of people who have
demanded and been given/not given employment; funds received and
spent; payments made; works sanctioned and works started; cost of works
and details of expenditure on it; duration of work and person-days
generated; reports of local committees; copies of muster rolls.
REGS- related accounts of each Gram Panchayat should be proactively
displayed and updated twice a year. Summary accounts should be
displayed through various means, including paintings on the walls at the
26
Panchayat Bhawan, postings on notice boards and publication in Annual
Reports available at cost price.
Report Cards on local works, employment and funds should be posted by
the Gram Panchayats on its premises and by the Programme Officer at
the Panchayat Samiti/ Programme Officer’s office, and for the whole
district by the District Programme Coordinator at the District Programme
Coordinator/Zila Parishad office.
III Good Practices relating to the Suo-motu disclosure of
information Under section 4 of the Act every Public Authority is to maintain its records
systematically, and, as far as possible, to computerize these records and connect
them through a network all over the country on different systems. Further, Public
Authority is to publish complete details of its functioning, its powers,
responsibilities, duties, the name of all its employees, their salaries, the
documents held by them, the budget available etc. and the facilities for the
common public to access information in all these offices. As many as 17
manuals in which complete information regarding the functioning of every
Department and Public Authority has to be published on the public domain. The
Authorities are required to provide reasons for their administrative or quasi-
judicial decisions to affected persons. The remaining portions of section 4, that is
sections 4 (2), 4(3) and 4(4), require the Public Authorities to provide suo motu
information to the Public from time to time, to disseminate such information
widely in such form and manner as is easily accessible to the public, and place it
to the extent possible in electronic format. The Central Government as well as
the State Governments had repeatedly expressed their commitment to
computerization and adoption of information technology. Substantial funds had
also been set apart under various projects and schemes of the Central and State
Governments for this purpose.
27
The Bhoomi Project 17
The Revenue Department of Karnataka has digitized and put online its land
records for their electronic management. Bhoomi arose out of the need to create
a system that would prevent as far as possible the inaccuracies that marred the
manual system of maintaining land records. This is a Central scheme
implemented by the state Revenue Department through its Deputy
Commissioners of districts. The land records of 177 taluks were computerised.
Under Bhoomi, land records are updated and changes made online so that when
farmers request a record of rights, tenancy and crops (RTC), the information is
current. The software incorporates the updation of land ownership details in its
business process itself so that there is no lag in the updation method. This
system allows officials to add other information to that which already exists, see
all pending work in their inbox, provides enough inbuilt help to recover data from
a crashed system, and has an inherent state of the art security system to protect
the system and records from any sort of manipulation. Today farmers can directly
access 20 million digitised land records that were earlier maintained by 9000
village officials manually.
Significant initiatives undertaken by Public Authorities
Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances, Ministry of
Parliamentary affairs, Department of Bio-Technology, and Ministry of Mines
have used their websites to disseminate information about activities of their own
departments/ministries. Department of Administrative Reforms and Public
Grievances has used its department website (http://darpggrievances.nic.in) to
facilitate lodging of grievances by any citizens from any web based facility
anywhere in India.
17 CIC Annual report 2005-06, p 31
28
Ministry of Mines has reported that its existing Public Grievance Redressal and
Monitoring System (PGRMS) are being upgraded to a more comprehensive
monitoring system that will become operational shortly to users.
Proactive Disclosure by Zila Parishad, Ludhiana18
The Zila Parishad of Ludhiana district has disclosed the following
information on its website proactively (http://ludhiana.nic.in/dept/local-
zila-parishad.html);
Composition of the Zila Parishad including the list of names and
addresses of all the elected members;
Names and addresses of Chairpersons and Vice-Chairpersons of all
the Panchayat Samitis in Ludhiana district;
Names and contact details of government officials of the Zila
Parishad i.e. the Chief Executive Officer and his deputy besides
others;
List of properties owned by the Zila Parishad; and
Important schemes being run by the Zila Parishad.
Besides this, the website also provides a brief write-up about the
salient features of the Punjab Panchayati Raj Act 1994.
India’s First Transparent Office19
The Information Technology & Communications Department of the Government
of Andhra Pradesh has launched India’s first transparent office. Citizens can
access documents, files, orders and status of applications, and so forth, online,
anywhere and anytime by visiting the office at <http://kmbank.ap.gov.in>. Other
departments in the State are expected to follow suit. The Information Technology
& Communications Department of the Government of Other initiatives include:
18Sohini Paul & Charmaine Rodrigues, The Right to Information and PRIs: Punjab as a case study, CHRI, 2006 19 Information accessed from CGG report – ‘Innovations/Good practices in implementation of RTI 2005, 2009, as well as from PWC report –‘ Understanding the Key issues and Constraints in implementing the RTI ACT’, June 2009
29
All the Government Orders are being made available at
<http://goir.ap.gov.in/Reports.aspx>
Entire Gazette is being made available at < http://gazette.ap.gov.in/>
Citizen to Government Interface, to enhance responsiveness among public
authorities, was developed by the Centre for Good Governance at
<http://webapps.cgg.gov.in/gms/welcome.do>, which enables citizens to
register their complaints online and know status of the complaints.
Nagaland tops RTI survey list of states
A ‘National Assessment of the degree of compliance to suo motu disclosure
provisions under RTI Act 2005’ conducted by Public Affairs Centre, Bangalore,
has shown that Nagaland is at the top in terms of suo motu disclosure by its
Public Authorities. The survey identified Nagaland as being RTI compliant
especially in suo motu disclosure of its Public Authorities with 62% followed by
Delhi (56%), Bihar (55%), Punjab (51%) and Andhra Pradesh (49%).The survey
further showed that Jharkhand, Arunachal Pradesh and Assam had a zero
percent score, as seen from their respective websites.
The same survey has shown that in the Government of India, Department of
Commerce and Ministry of Panchayati Raj top scored with 87%, while Ministry of
Agriculture and Cooperation and Ministry of Environment and Forest at 11%.
Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation contained no information what
so ever, as the website contained no information. The survey conducted in
December 2008 took a view of 500 websites to arrive at the findings.
Self-Disclosure of Panchayats in Madhya Pradesh20
In a significant move to empower people with information, Samarthan, a Bhopal
based nongovernmental organisation, motivated 5 Panchayats each in Sehore
20 Information accessed from CGG report – ‘Innovations/Good practices in implementation of RTI 2005, 2009.
30
and Ajaygarh to prepare self disclosure manuals in accordance with the Section
4 (1) (b) of the RTI Act 2005. These documents were prepared and were kept at
the Panchayat so that the Gram Sabha members could review the document at
any time.
In some other panchayats information relevant to the citizens were put up on
notice-boards for the citizen. Seven panchayats in Ajaygarh block have displayed
cost and physical details of the development works undertaken during the year
on notice boards. This contains information on the works undertaken, the budget
and the actual cost incurred. Five panchayats each in Ichchawar and Pawai
blocks displayed the list of persons benefited under different schemes.
Meghalaya MLA declares suo motu21
A suo motu disclosure made by the MLA of 21 Mawprem Assembly Constituency
in the form of a booklet listing all schemes ( physical and financial) taken up by
him in his constituency under the MLA Scheme during the year 2004-05 and
2005-06. The Commission recommends that Government should make it
obligatory on the part of the implementing agencies to prepare and publish the
list of all the schemes (physical and financial) implemented under MLA scheme
during the year, constituency-wise. The same should be done with respect to
MPLADS.
Audit of Proactive Disclosure – A mechanism developed by CGG and used
by Andhra Pradesh to assess compliance 22
CGG has developed a methodology that has identified 25 parameters for audit
and segregated them into 3 broad categories, based on their relative importance:
There are 10 parameters with high relative importance (A)
21 Information accessed from CGG report – ‘Innovations/Good practices in implementation of RTI 2005, 2009. 22 Information accessed from CGG report – ‘Innovations/Good practices in implementation of RTI 2005, 2009.
31
There are 8 parameters with average/medium relative importance (B)
There are 7 parameters with low importance (C)
Based on the relative importance of the three categories, different weightages
have been accorded to the different categories – 0.5 to high importance
parameters, 0.3 to average importance parameters and 0.2 to low importance
parameters.
Each parameter is rated on a 3-point quantitative rating scale (0:1:2) to assess
quality / extent of compliance on that parameter. Scores obtained on different
parameters are summed to get the category scores and percentages. The
weightages are applied to each category percentage to get the final score which
reveals the overall percentage of compliance by the public authority. Based on
the percentage of compliance, public authorities can be graded into 4 types. The
methodology also enables qualitative feedback on each parameter of proactive
disclosure.
Role of NGOs and civil Society organizations in Proactive Disclosure 23
A number of NGOs in various states are organizing Jansunvai (Public Hearings)
and RTI camps, spreading awareness about the RTI Act throughout the state
with particular emphasis on disadvantaged group. The basic objectives of these
camps and public meetings is to motivate people to use RTI act as weapon for
realizing their rights, ensuring implementation of the RTI Act in letter and spirit
and Monitoring compliance of public authority with the provisions of the Act. The
public hearing (jansunvai) is one of the most powerful public tools to demand
accountability from local governance units.
23 Learning Visit to a “Best Practice” Area on Decentralization “Jansunvai”
32
Public Hearing or Jansunvai is open-air hearing where official records of state
development projects are exposed to the scrutiny of the intended beneficiaries.
To refer to the genesis of jansunvai as a tool for promoting accountability in local
administration, Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) in Rajasthan which is a
working example of transparent organization, triggered the conceptualization of
jansunvai by building the grassroots movement for transparency of government
functioning and people’s Right to Information (RTI).
In Delhi NGOs like Parivartan and National Campaign for People’s Right to
Information (NCPRI) are organizing such public hearings. Residents of
resettlement colonies, concerned officials, NGO activists, media and members of
UNIAWGD are present to attend the jansunvai. A panel of eminent citizens is
invited to preside over the proceedings which generally include retired Judges,
community leaders, NGO activists, Journalists, Representatives from GoI etc.
This panel seeks modes of accountability to resolve some of the problems to be
thrown up during the public hearing.
Despite the new Panchayati Raj Acts in each state of India in conformity with the
provisions of 73rd and 74th Constitutional amendments and the Right to
Information Act, information regarding the local administration accounts is difficult
to come by for local people. This culture of secrecy fosters corruption, which has
led not only to denial of public facilities to the common man but also development
officials paying contractors for non-existent works. The mode of jansunvai
exposes these links and enables ordinary citizens to have their voices heard.
Excitement and energy is built in by the artist co-workers of the organizing NGO
by using a combination of songs, slogans, and puppetry to highlight such finer
points of the subject of jansunvai, thus setting in the tone for everyone to actively
participate in the hearing. The basic objective of these public hearings is
“Hamara Paisa, Hamara Hisab”.
Usually photocopies of the records of works of the concerned department using
the RTI Act is obtained and this information is disseminated amongst the
33
residents of locality, to begin the process of verification of works. Then the
residents of the locality are invited to voice their comments related to verification
of actual work done. This helps in the evaluation of work done on the spot. The
jansunwai has demonstrated the proportion of embezzlement and the urgency
with which, the issue needs to be tackled. It clearly demonstrates that most of the
time, it is not the inadequacy of funds but leakages, which are responsible for
poor development. The jansunwai has had tremendous impact on the psyche
and morale of the people. The community, this way, becomes aware that it is
possible to hold the government accountable in full public glare in this manner.
Due to efforts of the RTI campaign and local organizations, there have been
public hearings of this kind in rural areas in several states. There have also been
public hearings on a range of subjects including human rights, democratic rights,
environmental concerns and issues of governance.
IV Good Practices adopted by the Information Commissions:
The Central Information Commissions have taken a number of innovative steps
not only for the timely disposal of complaints/ appeals but also to generate
awareness among the public. These steps by the information commissions are of
vital importance in the context of their roles and responsibilities under the RTI Act
and have direct impact on the implementation of the RTI Act.
Information Dissemination by Central Information Commission 24
The Central Information Commission launched its web site (http://www.cic.gov.in)
to make free access of information possible to the citizens of the country about
its activities. Since then the website has been made more user friendly and
comprehensive in terms of contents. Now anyone can access all information
about RTI Act, RTI-MIS, decisions of CIC, status of Appeal and Complaints, CIC
24 Annual Report CIC, 2006-07, p. 49
34
Tenders, CIC Notifications, cause list of CIC, press releases etc. Website has
enabled an efficient means of communication between CIC and Citizens. It has
made CIC more efficient, user friendly, transparent and open in functioning. It
has made the task of information dissemination much simpler. Its utility can be
further enhanced by making the same information available in National Language
and also in regional languages.
Use of Video Conferencing technology for reducing cost to Citizens
Central Information Commission is helping large segment of the information
seekers in reducing cost by using video conferencing network for giving
opportunity of hearing while discharging its responsibilities. CIC conducted first
hearing using video conferencing facilities set up by National Information Center
(NIC), New Delhi and NIC, Raipur. Appellant and respondents were at Raipur
and bench comprising of CIC Sh. Wajahat Habibullah and Information
Commissioner Prof. M.M. Ansari were at New Delhi. Since then CIC has
conducted many hearings whenever there is need and depending on the
availability of video conference infrastructure and hope to continue to do so in
future. This effort on part of CIC will save time and money of the citizens in
seeking justice.
Workshop/ Seminar/ Invited lectures attended / delivered by CIC and ICs
The Central Information Commission and Information Commissioners attended
various workshops, seminars and delivered invited talks on subjects related RTI
Act 2005 and other subjects related in various parts of the country as well as
abroad.
35
Publication of Material by APIC and CGG25
APIC in association with Centre for Good Governance, has printed a number of
material to generate awareness among the public. The copies of RTI Act were
printed and distributed to the various Public Authorities along with the templates
on RTI Act as per Sections 4(1)(b) & 5(1) & (2). At the behest of APIC, Centre for
Good Governance also got printed the following material and distributed to the
Public Authorities; - Users guide on RTI Act; Manual for Public Authorities,
Information Officers & Appellate Authorities; Citizen’s Guide; Guide for Civil
Society Organisations; Media Guide; Pamphlets ; User Guides; Stickers; Posters.
Apart from Government, Quasi Governmental Institutions and Public
Undertakings, many private and Non-Governmental Organizations are also
encouraged to bring out publications to promote awareness among the common
people on RTI Act and its usages. In consultation with the A.P. Information
Commission, several Civil Society Organisations and other Institutions like PRIA,
WAASAN, APMAS, SPACE, ASHA, LOKSATTA, APUWJ, SACIR, FBV, CPF
etc., are carrying out their own efforts for the better implementation of the RTI
Act, 2005. Under the overall guidance of the A.P. Information Commission, the
MCR HRD Institute has also conducted (15) Information Fairs for publicizing the
RTI Act and distributed pamphlets to all the participants and the visitors to the
Information Fairs. Several thousands of people visited these Fairs.
Uttarakhand Information Commission has also brought out several publications
both in English and Hindi for dissemination among the officials and civil society.
The publications are in the form of newsletters, guidebooks and manuals.
25 APIC Annual Report 2007, p.7-8 and APIC Annual Report 2005-06
36
Journal – ‘Kerala State Information Reporter’26
The Kerala State Information Commission (KSIC) has been publishing a
Quarterly journal titled the ‘Kerala State Information Reporter’. This journal
contains all important judgments, rulings and orders of the State Information
Commission, during the three months covering the quarter. This journal can
further include decisions which State Information Commissioners feel are
interesting and which reflect a new point of law or a new situation which needs to
be studied. This journal would provide help to information providers in disposing
cases of similar nature and would further spread awareness of the RTI and
activities being undertaken.
Innovative steps by A. P. Information Commission27
With a view to improve the functioning of the Information Commission, the
Commission took the following innovative steps:
1. Based on the Secretariat Manual, District office Manual and Central
Administration Tribunal's Rules, the Commission categorized the various
disposals and fixed the time limits for the retention of disposals.
2. To avoid delays in identifying the defective appeals/complaints, the
Commission has adopted the system of pre-scrutiny at the reception stage and is
returning defective appeals/complaints immediately on their receipt for
rectification and re-submission.
3. Soon after an appeal/ complaint is admitted for hearing, the fact is being
intimated through notices to the parties and the respondents are being
simultaneously directed to file their affidavits. This has brought in a triple
advantage of (1) the appellant is becoming aware of the status of the appeal/
26 Information accessed from PWC report –‘ Understanding the Key issues and Constraints in implementing the RTI ACT’, June 2009 27 APIC Annual Report 2008, p.32
37
complaint; (2) the respondents are able to submit affidavits indicating the status;
and (3) by the time of hearing, most of the respondents are able to provide the
information. Experience has shown that in many cases the appellants/complaints
are no longer interested to attend hearings before the Commission as they are
already in receipt of information and have withdrawn their appeals.
Divisional benches of State Information Commission in Maharashtra28
In order to strengthen the delivery and reach of its services, the Maharashtra
State Information Commission had introduced the concept of divisional benches.
In this initiative, the State is divided into five regions and for every region a State
Information Commissioner is appointed who is responsible for disposing off the
appeals in his area. Accordingly, the Maharashtra Information Commission has 5
divisional benches in Pune, Mumbai, Aurangabad, Amravati and Nagpur to
enable citizens to approach the most convenient bench.
The State Chief Information Commissioner (SCIC) is responsible for general
superintendence, direction and management of the affairs of the State
Information Commission. The State Information Commissioners assists SCIC by
discharging their duties in following cities:
• Pune • Aurangabad • Nagpur • Konkan • Greater Mumbai
Orissa is prioritizing Public Interest Cases29
During disposal of applications and Second appeals, the Orissa State Information
Commission identified two types of disputes; one involving public interest and the
other individual interest of citizens. The State Commission has decided to accord
28 Information accessed from PWC report –‘ Understanding the Key issues and Constraints in implementing the RTI ACT’, June 2009 29 Information accessed from CGG report – ‘Innovations/Good practices in implementation of RTI 2005, 2009.
38
priority to disposal of public interest cases by putting an identifying mark on the
case record as ‘PIC’. These cases are dealt with on a fast track basis on an inter
se first-cum-first-heard basis, subject to the proviso u/S.7 (1) involving life or
liberty of an individual.
Orissa SIC sets up Division Bench for impartial judgments on imposing penalty30
The Orissa State Information Commission hears cases involving imposition of
penalty on erring PIOs/referred PIOs in the Division Bench (so that the
considered opinion of the State Commission can be reflected in the decision).
The erring PIOs who without any reasonable cause have violated the provisions
of Section 7(1)of the Act by not providing information within the stipulated
maximum period of 30 days have been taken to task by the State Commission by
imposing cash penalty on them in accordance with the provisions of Section
20(1) of the Act.
Additionally, the recovery of the cash penalty imposed on such PIOs is also
monitored at intervals by the Secretary, Orissa Information Commission by
holding regular meetings with the officials of the concerned Public Authorities.
V Good Practices in the Implementation of RTI Act by the Central/ State Government to make information available to the people and for generating awareness
Single Window Delivery Services at Suwidha Centre, Nawanshahr District, Punjab31 SUWIDHA (Single User-friendly Window Disposal and Help-line for Applicants)
Centres have been built in all the districts of the state to provide district
administration services to the citizens. In order to streamline the delivery of
30 Information accessed from CGG report – ‘Innovations/Good practices in implementation of RTI 2005, 2009. 31 referred in Sohini Paul & Charmaine Rodrigues, The Right to Information and PRIs: Punjab as a case study, CHRI, 2006. See also Based on a paper on “Single window delivery services at Suwidha Centre” written by Mr. Krishan Kumar, Deputy Commissioner, Nawanshahr district
39
government services through a single window for citizens and with the additional
objective of changing the mindset of secrecy that government officers are
habituated to, the district administration of Nawanshahr has set up a state-of-the-
art Suwidha Centre located at the district headquarters. This centre is a two-
storied building with computerised facilities for providing around 100 services
through 26 windows. One of the windows provides information related to the RTI
Act 2005, namely the list of APIOs, PIOs and Appellate Authorities in the district
along with their telephone numbers and other contact details. The major services
include attestation of affidavit on the spot, delivery of birth and death certificates,
passport applications, registration of marriages, counter signatures of
documents, arms licenses, renewal of licenses, driving licenses, registration of
vehicles, collection of electricity and telephone bills, delivery of copy of revenue
records and court orders in a time bound manner. On an average about 1000
people visit the Suwidha Centre on a working day. One of the services provided
at this centre is “patwari at your call” which was introduced in the district from 1
August 2005. Under this service a toll free number 55501 has been provided and
software has been developed incorporating mobile telephone numbers of the
patwaris etc. An applicant desiring to have a copy of a revenue record or to
redress his grievances can dial this number at any time of the day or night. Once
an applicant submits the details on the toll free number, a call is made
immediately to the village patwari to provide such records to the Suwidha Centre.
The latter then sends the documents by courier to the residence of the applicant
within 48 hours from the time the first call was made by the applicant.
RTI Counter – Accepting the suggestion of Haryana State Information
Commission, Haryana government along with NIC has started RTI counter in
every District of Haryana. This RTI counter will be helpful to the people who want
to file RTI application. After opening of these RTI counters the applicants will not
be required to visit the departments again and again to get the information. The
information from the department will reach these counters from where the same
will be passed on to the applicants.
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Haryana to create RTI Cell in CS office32
The Haryana government has decided to create a Right to Information (RTI) Cell
in the office of the Chief Secretary to ensure timely response to RTI queries. The
Administrative Secretaries had been asked to designate one officer in each
department as Nodal Public Information Officer (PIO) who would be part of RTI
Cell and would co-ordinate with other PIOs of their respective departments to
ensure effective implementation of web based RTI system, as well as appeals.
Capacity Building for Access to Information33
Since the year 2006, the Government of India (DoPT) has been executing a
UNDP funded project to build capacity for effective implementation of the RTI
Act. This project covers all states and within each state 2 selected districts.
Under this project, more than 75000 stakeholders including resource
persons/trainers, PIOs/ APIOs, other government officials, representatives from
NGOs and media etc. have been trained across different states in India.
However, this intervention is quite limited in its mandate. There is every need to
upscale this initiative to cover every district in the country.
The Project Components are:
1. Training and Capacity Building: Create a cadre of National, State, District
and Block resource persons and provide training to key stakeholders at
both the supply and demand sides;
2. Research and Documentation: Undertake action research and
documentation on implementation of Right to Information Act and for
building a knowledge bank of case studies and best practices;
3. Mass Awareness Campaign: Generate immense public awareness on
Right to Information, particularly at the grassroots level, through use of
32 Information accessed from CGG report – ‘Innovations/Good practices in implementation of RTI 2005, 2009. 33 NiA, A GoI and UNDP initiative, http://www.rti.org.in/nia/
41
different media vehicles such as pamphlets/brochures, print and electronic
media, road shows/kalajathas etc.
4. Clearing House: Networking among practitioners and project
implementation agencies and dissemination of best practices and
experiences on the Right to Information.
5. Information Fairs/Information Audit: Information fairs or open houses for
citizens to seek information from government agencies at State and
District levels as well as audit of information requests and their disposal.
6. Dissemination and Advocacy: Sensitizing and disseminating information
on RTI to key stakeholders through distribution of RTI Act, user guides
and manuals in local languages, seminars, advocacy workshops etc.
7. Multi-stakeholders workshops: Conducting workshops involving key
stakeholders at National, State and District levels. Some key workshops
planned include a Retreat of Information Commissioners, Media Conclave,
Workshops with State Secretaries, ATI Directors, District Collectors, CSO
representatives etc.
Project Period: Three Years
Project Output
Components Outputs
Planning for Capacity
Building, Project
Implementation, Review
and Monitoring
Project Work Plan
Capacity Building Strategy for Right to Information
Project Management & Monitoring System
E-Tool for Tracking Implementation
Training and Capacity
Building
Preparation of training manuals and guides:
Handbook of Trainers
Manual for PIOs and APIOs
Citizen’s Guide on RTI
Guide for CSOs and NGOs
Guide for Media
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Case Studies and Best Practices
FAQs
Training of 1000 Resource Persons at NIA
Training of 12000 Resource Persons - Key
Stakeholders (PIOs/APIOs, Govt. Officials, CSOs,
NGOs, Media representatives, SHGs etc) at State
and District level
Dissemination and
Advocacy
Printing and Distribution of RTI Act, Citizen’s Guide
on RTI, Brochures etc.
Advocacy Workshops, Seminars etc. at State and
District level
Outreach Activities
Information Audit
Audit of Information Requests and Disposal
Information Fairs/Open Houses at State and District
level
Multi-stakeholders
workshops
Retreat of Information Commissioners
Country Strategy for Capacity Building on RTI
State Secretaries Workshop
District Collectors Meet
Conclave of CSOs/NGOs/Media representatives
Other Stakeholder workshops
Coverage: The project is being simultaneously undertaken across 26 States and
52 Districts (2 in each State) in the country with the help of the Administrative
Training Institutions.
Role of National Implementing Agency-NIA (CGG-YASHADA)
The following role is envisaged for the National Implementing Agency:
Preparation of a detailed implementation and partnership strategy for this
project;
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Preparation of log frame matrix, work plan and budget for the entire scope
and duration of the project;
Periodic reviews, preparation of annual work plans and budget;
Preparatory/background work necessary for implementing the various
activities under the project;
Close monitoring of the project with reference to the work plans, including
periodic reports of physical and financial progress; and
Any other operational and substantive support that would be required for
the project.
RTI on Wheels
The feedback obtained was that the training had helped in brining about
awareness of the provisions of the Act, but its coverage was limited especially in
the rural areas. So in order to enhance mass awareness, MATI in Meghalaya
state took up the RTI on wheels to the Deputy Commissioners of the concerned
districts i.e. Jaintia Hills and West Garo Hills. A Government vehicle loaded with
IEC materials in local dialect, resource persons from the district were engaged
for the purpose of spreading awareness about Right to Information. The
programmes were conducted during weekly market days and people of
neighboring villages who visit the market were exposed to RTI. Special
attractions of the program were skits, street plays and songs performed by local
youth to spread the message of RTI to the people. The turnout and results were
overwhelming. RTI on wheel was also conducted at two other districts by SIA at
2 Districts i.e. EGH & Ri Bhoi Dist.
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National RTI Awards, 2009 34
National RTI Awards 2009 commemorates the spirit of the Right to Information
(RTI) Act. The award felicitates the key players who work closely with each other
to make the Act a success. National Right to Information Awards have been
constituted to honour those Information Commissioners, Public Information
Officers and Citizens of India who have been actively involved in successful
implementation of the Right to Information Act 2005 in the country. There are
34 National RTI awards instituted, TNN, Jun 14, 2009, 03.51am IST, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/pune/National-RTI-awards-instituted/articleshow/4653740.cms; Access information at http://www.rtiawards.org/
45
three categories of the Awards this year, namely Best Information Commissioner
of the Year, Best Public Information Officer of the Year, and Best Citizen of the
Year Award.
Public Cause Research Foundation (PCRF) has invited nominations for its
National Right to Information (RTI) Awards, 2009. Instituted in 2009, the awards
will be presented in November every year to those who have displayed
exemplary commitment to RTI. There are five awards in three different
categories. One award would be given to an outstanding information
commissioner, who enables access to correct and complete information to a
maximum number of appellants. Two awards would be given to public
information officers who provide comprehensive and accurate information to a
maximum number of applicants within the prescribed time limit. The other two
awards would be given to citizens who create a maximum impact by using the
RTI Act. To honour and recognise the contribution of the bureaucratic
community as a whole to gather relevant data, which could go a long way in
identifying the shortcomings in the current system of the RTI as well as
suggesting possible reforms. Each award carries a citation, a plaque and a prize
money of Rs 2 lakh. Apart from the awards, at least a dozen citations would be
given away to information commissioners, public information officers and
citizens.
All information commissioners in the country are automatic nominees, however,
nominations are being invited from public information officers and citizens. They
can either nominate themselves or can be nominated by someone else.
Nominations can be sent online at www.rtiawards.org or through forms obtained
from National RTI Awards Secretariat, A-119, Kaushambi, Ghaziabad-201010,
Uttar Pradesh, and forwarded by post. The last date for filing nominations is June
30.
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Ranking of Public Authorities on basis of compliance by Uttarakhand Information Commission
The Uttarakhand Information Commission (UIC) has developed criteria for
reviewing the compliance of the Public Authorities in the state. Indicators have
been identified by the Information Commission and the officials on the RTI
ranking matrix. These indicators and the weightage given to the same in brackets
are as follows:
1. Existence of RTI Cell (1)
2. Registration of RTI applications (1)
3. Usage of standard formats and (2)
4. Fee receipt book (1)
5. Information Board (1)
6. Contact details of PIO, APIO, AA (5)
7. Departmental RTI disclosure manual(5)
8. Information on Annual report (1)
9. Maintenance of records (1)
10. Compliance to UIC’s directions (1)
11. MPR to the UIC (5)
12. Training (3)
In the manner described above, UIC has ranked 76 Public Authorities in the
state. While doing so, it has provided significant feedback to the departments
(especially those lagging behind), on conducting training and polishing
procedures and systems, so as to be RTI compliant.
Proactive Contact with Public Authorities by Andhra Pradesh State Information Commission (ASIC) 35
The Andhra Pradesh State Information Commission in order to ensure
compliance to Right to Information Act 2005 has taken up a pro-active role vis-à-
vis the State Administration and other Public Authorities at all level viz.
35 Information accessed from PRIA report – ‘Tracking RTI in 8 States’, 2007
47
secretariat level, heads of Department level and District level. For this purpose,
the Commission has visited all the districts in the State and conducted review
meetings with Collectors, Superintendent of Police, 1st Appellate Authorities and
Public Information Officers and reviewed the compliance of Section 4 (1) b, 5 (1)
& (2) of the RTI Act.
Reviewing the implementation of RTI Act with the officials of Krishna, East and
West Godavari districts in Nov, 2007 at Vijayvada Chief Information
Commissioner Shri C D Arah had advised the officials to initiate steps to
implement the Act effectively. He asked the officials to submit the district-level
annual report on the implementation of the Act by December-end as the
Commission has to submit its second annual report to the Government.
Conclusion and Lessons
Since 2005 when the RTI Act was enacted, attempts have been made in several
states and at the centre for implementing the Act in letter and in spirit. For the
statutory ‘right’ to information to become a living reality both the centre and the
state governments have undertaken many innovative measures, some of which
have been discussed in this paper. The principles and the lessons that emerge
out of these experiments provide a set of general principles that need to inform
any new institutional design or process.
The first principle relates to the ease and cost of obtaining information. Any
measure that significantly lowers the transaction costs of seeking information to
the citizen goes a long way in making the right an achievable reality. The
Jaankari system of Bihar places the least demand on the citizen in terms of costs
related to time, physical movement, information costs etc. The citizen with just a
complaint or enquiry and access to a phone can seek information. Similarly a
mobile centre which reaches the doorsteps of villagers, especially in remote and
difficult areas in the North-Eastern regiems, provides similar advantages to the
48
citizen. Seeking information through post offices, which have a wide spatial
coverage in this country, is another way of reducing the costs to the citizen.
Second, the type of information and the manner in which it is made available are
important to the citizen. She is interested in matters which affect her like land
rights, amount of tax to be paid and the status of her complaint. But she needs
confidentiality also. Several systems which allow the citizen to access
information related to him only, but are placed by the authorities in the public
domain are extremely useful. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi’s Website, for
example, enables the automatic calculation of property tax liability, based on a
set of parameters to be entered by the citizen, and generates a ‘challan’ or tax-
assessment statement, which can then be paid either on-line or through
designated bank branches. The Bhoomi project similarly, by meeting the most
important information requirement of farmers has become extremely popular.
Cause lists also fall in this utility category.
The other type of suo motu disclosures relate to information which may be
needed by the citizen for interfacing with the government. This would include
step by step directions of the process to be followed, the names and contact
numbers of concerned officials, the forms, and so on. These are information
which are not person specific and therefore is now increasingly being put in the
public domain by municipalities, by passport offices, the railways, the tax
departments and others. The citizen can know and prepare, according to law
and regulations, the required documents.
A ‘right’ must finally be justifiable. The Act therefore provides for punishment to
act as a deterrence. But the process of providing justice must be quick and
efficient. Various information commissions have therefore relied on improved
case management systems where complaints can be monitored and tracked
through various stages of processing till satisfactory disposal. The tracking and
monitoring systems of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and the Central Information
49
Commission are significant innovations. The system followed by Maharashtra,
by expanding the spatial coverage of the State Commission, is also an attempt at
increasing the speed of administration of justice. The training of the staff of the
Commissions, which should include emphasis on motivation and attitudes, as
well as the office-management procedures, are areas that perhaps need a little
more attention.
Finally, since constant vigilance in the price for freedom, the role of NGOs, the
media, the courts and the civil society are critical. India has been fortunate to
have a very active and vigilant civil society movement and a media which has not
been afraid to highlight deficiencies or deviations. Their role in the spread of
awareness has been exemplary. Acts, rules, systems and procedures can all be
subverted unless an atmosphere of freedom and accountability is allowed to
prevail.