Sunday, October 31, 2010

[HumJanenge] RTI boss blocked info on Adarsh

 

http://www.mid-day.com/news/2010/nov/011110-Ramanand-Tiwari-Adarsh-Society-allotted-flat-RTI-Vihar-Durve.htm

Even as the Adarsh Housing Society scam threatens to cost the CM his chair, a recently unearthed fact implicates the State Information Commissioner for allegedly stonewalling information disclosing his assets.

The issue, overlooked till now, came to light after Ramanand Tiwari's son Onkar's name figured among the flat owners of Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society. According to RTI activist Vihar Durve, he had repeatedly attempted to obtain information on the assets owned by Tiwari and other senior government officials. But Tiwari had stonewalled all his efforts, he claims.
"I first applied to the Public Information Officer (PIO) of the General Administration Department of the state government in November 2008. In December the same year, an undersecretary and PIO of the state government replied that as the officers had retired, the information of their assets could not be made available.
The RTI reply also said that since the information was not in public interest, it was not binding on the state to provide it to the applicant," said Durve.
When Durve appealed to the appellate authority, his efforts were blocked again with claims that he had not signed the application.
Said Durve, "They tried to avoid giving the information as well.
A particular reply by the PIO (copy of which is available with MiD DAY) said that the information on the assets of the concerned officials was destroyed at the level of the joint secretary Seema Vyas, who was authorised to destroy it, as the officials had retired from service."
Incidentally, even Vyas's name figured among the beneficiaries of Adarsh Society. Eventually, Durve went on to appeal before the Information Commissioner in March 2009.
"In reply, the office of the information commissioner said that June 11, 2009 had been set as the date of hearing.
Immediately after that, another letter informed me about the hearing being cancelled because of certain unavoidable circumstances. I am still waiting to hear from them," Durve said.
"If the Central Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi can disclose his assets, what stops the state information commissioners from disclosing theirs? They just did not want to disclose their assets," he added.
The Other Side
When we called Tiwari's mobile phone, a woman answered and asked what the issue was. When we disclosed the issue, she said he was not at home and would be available for comment only the next day. Messages to the number went unanswered after that.
Shailesh Gandhi starts the trend
Activist-turned-CIC member Shailesh Gandhi first raised the issue of declaration of assets by information commissioners. Gandhi had said that he made his property statement public in the interests of "transparency" of the office, and that other commissioners should follow suit too.
After a letter from a Pune-based applicant asking information commissioners to reveal their assets, Gandhi gave details of his personal income and family wealth amounting to Rs 5.38 crore.
Other Officials
Other officials under the scanner in Adarsh scam:
Uttam Khobragade, former Food and Drugs Administration commissioner
Jairaj Pathak, former municipal commissioner
Pradeep Vyas, collector in 2004, when the plot was handed over to Adarsh CHS
IA Kundan, former Mumbai collector
P V Deshmukh, former Urban Development deputy secretary
D K Shankaran, former state chief secretary, and his wife Joyce
Ranjit Sangitrao, son of former suburban collector C S Sangitrao
Arun Pawar, a former Income Tax commissioner

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[HumJanenge] Awareness programme on right to information

 

http://www.centralchronicle.com/viewnews.asp?articleID=50854

Nav Smradhi Community Welfare Society organised awareness programme on the topic `Right to Information' for girls of Roop Nagar slum area situated in Govindpura. In the beginning of the programme member of the committee Anita welcomed all the girls and said that Government has given a right to citizens through which common man can get information about the decisions taken by the Government.
To ensure this right, Government has made Right to Information Act. Giving more information on this subject member of the committee Sangeeta informed that to ensure accountability of Government towards people lot of efforts were made so that transparency in work can be maintained and corruption can be controlled. Owing to these efforts on October 12, 2005 law of right to information was made. The objective of this law is to ensure such transparency of information which is necessary to make Government accountable. He added that after framing this law responsibility of its implementation was of the government. Therefore Government has appointed one public information officer in every department. Responsibility of making the information available is of the public information officer of the concerned Department. In this programme 38 girls were given information of the subject.

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[HumJanenge] Cops suspect arson in 2009 RTO fire

 

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Cops-suspect-arson-in-2009-RTO-fire/Article1-620577.aspx

The fire at the Regional Transport Office (RTO) at Thane in 2009 was not an accident. This is what the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) suspects. On February 5, 2009, a fire burnt all records of details about two and four-wheeler vehicles registered with the RTO, including professional taxes paid by commercial vehicles. The police suspect foul play as the fire had mysteriously broken out 16 days after an Right to Information query sought details on vehicle registration and professional tax.

The RTI, filed on January 19, 2009, sought details on imported vehicles, their customs bill of entry, taxes on such vehicles, cess tax, and proof of residence provided by the importers in the past four years. Moreover, information pertaining to professional tax paid by commercial vehicles, the number of vehicles from outside Maharashtra registered with the RTO in these period (among others), had also been sought.

For the query on imported vehicles, the RTO, in its reply furnished on February 18, 2009, said the records were gutted. For the professional taxes, the RTO did not give records of three-and-a-half years. The remaining six months — June 2007 to December 2007 — it said that though it had received payments of over Rs 17 crore from owners, the receipts for the same were not available. For outstation vehicles' registration, the RTO reiterated that the records were gutted.

"It is unlikely that all the records were kept in one section. This was never investigated," said a senior ACB official, who is investigating the professional tax fraud at the RTO.

On October 22, the ACB had raided the Thane RTO following a tip-off that a racket was being run in the collection of professional tax from commercial vehicles. During the raid, the ACB team had come across Rs 10 lakh unaccounted cash stashed inside a locker.

The ACB on Friday conducted searches and truckloads of documents were seized —mostly fake bank challans. A senior ACB official, requesting anonymity since he is not authorised to speak to the media, said the RTO had not furnished details of the professional taxes collected by it to the transport commissioner's office since the past three years.

ACB sources said a senior clerk, Gharat, has emerged as the key `coordinator' in the scam which has been running for the past four years. They said the amount of the fraud is feared to be more than Rs 400 crore — at least Rs 100 crore every year.

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[HumJanenge] RTI activist exposes land scam involving IPS officers in Mumbai

 

http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/118171/India/rti-activist-exposes-land-scam-involving-ips-officers-in-mumbai.html

Days after the Adarsh Nagar Cooperative Housing Society scam was exposed, yet another land scandal in Mumbai has now put Maharashtra's high and mighty in the dock.
The land allotted to Maharashtra cadre IPS officers in the posh Juhu area has been put to commercial use causing heavy loss of revenue to the exchequer. The matter was exposed following a Right to Information Act (RTI) application seeking details of IPS officers availing government quarters.
When this prime land was allotted to senior IPS officers in 2003, it was under an agreement that it would not be sold again. It was meant strictly for service apartments and not for commercial purposes. The third condition was that these officers would not seek a government quarter as long as they were posted in Mumbai.
But several high-profile police officers of the state threw all norms to the winds in leasing their houses for lakhs of rupees. When the issue reached courts, rulebooks were changed overnight to suit the influential IPS officers' lobby.
Under a new law in 2008, Mumbai was divided into two parts -- city and suburbs -- to ensure these officers do not have to give up their official quarters in the city.
The whistleblower in this case -- RTI activist Anand Joshi -- said, "Despite the 2,500 square feet flats being allowed to the IPS officers, 32 of them continue to live in government quarters. I have a detailed list that shows for how long they have been residing in these quarters."
Earlier this week, a scam involving allotment of army land in Colaba for Adarsh Nagar Society was exposed. The property, meant for Kargil war heroes and widows, was grabbed by army and navy top brass along with several senior IAS officers and politicians as well as their relatives at rates much cheaper than the prevailing market price.

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[HumJanenge] Cases against police officers out of RTI ambit

 

http://expressbuzz.com/cities/chennai/cases-against-police-officers-out-of-rti-ambit/219197.html

Information pertaining to allegations and enquiry against any State police officer will not be provided even under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, according to a Government Order (GO) issued early this month.
The State Government in its October 1 order, a copy of which is available with Express, has exempted 'Secret and Confidential Section' of the office of Director General of Police from the ambit of the RTI Act. But, the GO had not cited any details of the records coming under 'Secret and Confidential Section'.
Talking to Express, a senior police official said the records pertaining to enquiry and allegations against any police official are secret and confidential records, and such information will not be furnished under RTI.
Asked what prompted the government to issue such an order, he said he was not aware of any particular reason. The GO was issued following a report filed by the DGP's office requesting exemption under RTI.
The issue holds significance in the light of an RTI plea filed 40 days before the issue of the order, seeking details of cases pending against IPS officers of Tamil Nadu cadre. The plea was filed with the DGP office on August 16.
As per Section 24 of the RTI Act, the State Government can exempt establishment dealing with intelligence and security from time to time by issuing a notification.

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[HumJanenge] PCMC feels heat over Rs 22-lakh sweater deal row

 

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/pcmc-feels-heat-over-rs-22lakh-sweater-deal-row/704714/

Audit report slams education board for ‘wasteful’ expenditure and giving students sweaters, twice in March and July. The Accountant-General’s (A-G) office has passed strictures against the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation’s education board, calling its move to purchase sweaters for primary school students worth Rs 22 lakh as “unnecessary and an avoidable expenditure”. The A-G’s office has also taken strong objection to the fact that the sweater distribution began at the fag end of the academic year in March rather than during winter for which they were purchased.
The strictures â€" passed by the Office of senior deputy Accountant-General office, Local Bodies (Audit and Accounts), in Mumbai â€" have come to light after a reply to an RTI query filed by city-based activists Vihar Durve and Shriram Pandey.
With a view to provide sweaters to slum children and poor kids, the PCMC education board executed an agreement with Pravin Traders, Ludhiana to purchase 57,638 sweaters for 2007-2008 academic year for Rs 88 lakh, the audit report said. “The agreement was executed on November 30, 2007. The supply was to be made within 45 days. An advance payment of over Rs 65 lakh was made by the board on March 29, 2008,” the report said. “A scrutiny of the challan revealed that these sweaters were distributed at the fag end of academic year i.e. from March 28, 2008. The distribution went on till July, 2008” the report added.
Durve said the audit report points out that the decision of the board to purchase the sweaters for first-standard students was not justified, as these students had received the sweaters only in March 2008 when they were in (balwadi) nursery. “The expenditure of about Rs 22 lakh incurred for purchasing sweaters in 2008-9 for first-standard students was wasteful and amounts to double the benefit since they had received the sweaters in 2007-8 when they were in balwadi,” the audit report said.
When contacted, Municipal Commissioner Asheesh Sharma said his administration would probe the matter and find out what exactly went wrong. “Actually, this issue was apparently discussed with the board members and necessary instructions had been given to the board to ensure that there was no delay whatsoever in purchases made for primary school students,” Sharma said. Education officer Hari Bharati, who has recently been transferred, said the purchases were made before he took charge. “I can’t comment on those purchases. But, yes, during my tenure we ensured that everything was done on time,” Bharti said.
PCMC Primary School principal J M Marale said, “This is an age-old problem and systemic failure. It is time an independent monitoring authority is appointed to keep the education board on its toes.”

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[HumJanenge] Orissa RTI website bags best India eGov Award

 

http://orissadiary.com/CurrentNews.asp?id=21975

The RTI website of the State has been awarded as the best user-friendly website in the Country. A high profile event for choosing best website in the country conducted by India eGov 2.0 in New Delhi on October 28 choose States RTI Central Mechanism (RTI CMM) as the best user-friendly website and conferred India eGov 2.0 Awards-2010.
The States RTI website is now connecting as many as 1800 offices and providing information to the people tirelessly.
Speaking to the mediapersons here, Information and Public Relation Minister Prafulla Samal informed that the State's RTI CMM was selected by a grand jury consisting of eminent persons and headed by senior Director of IT of Ministry of Communication and IT Ashis Sanyal as the best from among 128 websites used by Government and public sector orgnisations.
The Nodal Officer of RTI and Secretary of Department SN Tripathy said the State RTI Portal www.rtiorissa.gov.in presently serves the need of over 1800 offices. The website access the system ensuring compliance of the RTI Act, 2005. It also has public feedback as well as interactive mechanism to enable citizen to post online RTI applications and appeals to any public authority.
The award was received by Dirctor, I and PR, BP Mohanty at the event ceremony held in New Delhi.

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Saturday, October 30, 2010

[HumJanenge] “Medha-led campaign exposed scam in 2008”

 

http://www.hindu.com/2010/10/31/stories/2010103162741100.htm

The National Alliance of Peoples' Movements (NAPM) led by Medha Patkar exposed the Adarsh Housing Society scam in 2008 by filing complaints with the Defence Ministry and the Environment Department and the State government, say activists Simpreet Singh and Santosh Daundkar.On the basis of the NAPM's complaint, the Defence authorities initiated action and the Department of Environment issued a show cause notice to the Society. The NAPM activists applied for information under the Right to Information (RTI) Act and filed a complaint on August 27, 2008 with the Department of Defence, the Maharashtra government, the Department of Environment, the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA).

Acting on the complaint, the Ministry of Defence initiated an inquiry and ordered an investigation.The Department of Environment, Maharashtra,had served a show cause notice to the Adarsh Society. The scandal was related to the allotment of land at Colaba that was under the possession of the Army. After the Kargil War, a few Army personnel demanded the land for building flats to "accommodate and reward the heroes of the Kargil operation and those who had laid down their lives for the protection of the motherland.

They said the initial list of the Society members comprised 40 members and included only Defence personnel. Now there are 103 members of which only 37 belonged to the Army and only three had any connection with the Kargil War.The bureaucrats whose children own flats in the Adarsh are: Jairaj Phatak, chairperson of the Rural Electrification Corporation; Ramanand Tiwari, former Secretary, Urban Development; D. K. Shankaran, former Chief Secretary; C.S. Sangitrao, IAS; S.C. Deshmukh, former Collector, Pune; P.V. Deshmukh, formerly with the Urban Development Department; and Uttam Khobragade, Secretary, Tribal Development.

Chavan's family

Chief Minister Ashok Chavan's family owned three flats. The former Union Environment Minister, Suresh Prabhu; Jitendra Avhad, NCP MLA; Kanhaiyalal Gidwani of the Congress and his two sons; Babasaheb Kupekar of the Congress were also among the flat owners, they said.

Seema Vyas, an IAS officer and wife of Pradeep Vyas, former Collector, Mumbai, and Idzes Kundan, Deputy Secretary and former Collector, Mumbai city, also own flats.

The NAPM says the following concessions were given to the Society as per the information it has obtained.The reservation of the plot was modified from Transit Camp and a Parade Ground to Residential Zone. Besides this, a road of width 60 metres was reduced to 19 metres and the floor space index (FSI) of the adjoining bus depot was given to the Adarsh Society. The income ceiling of Rs. 12,500 a month was waived for Army personnel and politicians and construction started without obtaining environmental clearance. The NAPM says the occupation certificate, which now stood revoked, was given even before the building was fully ready.The NAPM says that all these relaxations and concessions were given as it was mentioned every time that the building was for wives of war victims and for the Army personnel who served the country. But the fact remains that out of the total of 103 members only three are Kargil soldiers, and the land was taken in the name of the martyrs or their wives and used for the benefit of bureaucrats and politicians.

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[HumJanenge] Yet another instance of impersonation

 

Dear All,

I was just told that a few members are receiving emails similar to the one pasted below. Please note that this is yet another attempt to mislead the members.

My gmail id is vishalk@gmail.com and yahoo id is v_kudz@yahoo.com. Any email received by you from any other id is NOT from me. Please be wary of this.

Regards,
Vishal

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From:
Hum Janenge <humjanenge.owner@gmail.com>
To: nx12nospam.groups@googlemail.com
Subject: [HumJanenge] Gmail Forwarding Confirmation (#2207972) - Receive Mail from vis...
Date: Sat, 30 Oct 2010 16:00:11 IST
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please click the link below to confirm the request:

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Activists in Maharashtra join hands to form state Right to Information Council

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Activists-join-hands-to-form-state-Right-to-Information-Council/Article1-619715.aspx

Right to information activists in the state are fighting hard to invest people with more power, but sometimes they pay the price of their daredevilry with their lives. In order to add more muscle to their movement, activists from across the state have come together to form the Maharashtra Right to Information Council. The move aims to put an end to the complaints from activists about authorities subverting the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005, as well as reduce the spate of attacks on activists.

RTI activist Bhaskar Prabhu, convener of the council, said: "The main aim of the council is to keep a check on the proper implementation of the act, especially by public authorities.This comes close on the heels of a protest conducted by city activists against the appointment of the state chief information commissioner and other information commissioners. Alleging a non-transparent selection procedure, activists had demanded that the process be changed to have more accountability and public participation in the process.

Another issue on the council's agenda is the increasing number of attacks on RTI activists.The Hindustan Times had reported that Maharashtra had the highest number of attacks on activists. "The council will try devising a mechanism of offering protection and safeguarding activists," said Prabhu. "We will also have a coordinator and committees in every district to ensure that such objectives are met." The council has appointed 13 co-coordinators in Mumbai and a few in Pune, Nashik, and Satara Prabhu said the council would also focus on conducting social audits of welfare schemes, especially those meant for families below poverty line. This would include the public distribution system and the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act.

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Over 40,000 acres of village land under encroachment

http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/over-40-000-acres-of-village-land-under-encroachment/704204/

Punjab rural development and panchayat director told to probe illegal sale of land, pond by former sarpanch

Over 40,000 acres of panchayat land is under illegal occupation, and the figure is increasing every year in almost all districts. The admission was made by the office of the director of rural development and panchayats department in reply to an application filed by a Hoshiarpur villager under the Right to Information Act.

Hoshiarpur topped the list with over 9,343 acres under encroachment, followed by Patiala, with 8,083 acres illegally occupied, and Mohali, where the figure stood at 7,565 acres. The minimum encroachment (4 acres) was reported in Faridkot.

The report on illegal occupation till August last year was submitted in the Punjab State Information Commission, after Apar Singh Ghuman, a resident of Khera Kotli village in Hoshiarpur, filed a complaint against the rural development and panchayats office for denying him complete information. The government department admitted that the encroachment figure had increased in most districts in the last over three years, with little improvement in Bathinda, Patiala, Fatehgarh Sahib, Barnala and Mansa.

Ghuman, who reportedly also sought data from district offices, was not satisfied with the information provided to him, and listed certain anomalies before State Information Commissioner Surinder Singh. He said there was a difference in the figures supplied by the district development officers of Gurdaspur and Muktsar districts. He also made similar written observations about Gurdaspur, Ferozepur, Mohali and Kapurthala, a copy of which was handed over to the respondent, too.

When questioned by the commissioner, over telephone, Deputy Director, Land Development, J P Singla said he was in the High Court in connection with some other case and would submit his written reply on the next date of hearing.

In another such case, the SIC ordered a probe into encroachment and unauthorised sale of panchayat land. The case was filed by Avtar Singh, a resident of Siau village in Mohali, who had sought copies of the resolutions passed by the panchayat during the tenure of former sarpanch Karam Singh regarding a particular land plan. On not getting information, he filed a complaint with the commission in September this year.

He alleged that Karam Singh had encroached upon the land, and sold it — along with the village pond — to his brother. The SIC directed Kharar Block Development and Panchayat Officer (BDPO) Balwinder Singh to attend the next hearing along with the original records and asked the director of rural development and panchayats department to get an inquiry conducted and submit his report within two months.

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RTO okays 140 vehicles in a day

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/pune/TNNRtofitndocDone-AnoopRTO-okays-140-vehicles-in-a/articleshow/6831493.cms#ixzz13mk9qMlL

The Regional Transport Office of Pune is on a high efficiency mode. In response to a Right to Information (RTI) application, the transport body has said that it has, on at least one occasion, issued fitness certificates to at least 140 vehicles on a day during an eight-hour shift. However, Shrikant Karve, an employee with a transport firm who sought the information, said that practically it is an impossible task. "There are more than 10 types of tests that need to be carried out before passing a vehicle. It is simply beyond understanding that how so many vehicles pass the test in such a limited time," said Karve.

Fitness certificates are mandatory for heavy vehicles, including public transport buses, and auto rickshaws. Every vehicle in these categories needs to obtain such a certificate each year after two years of purchase. Fitness parameters include checking of the braking system, leakages, adherence to pollution norms, steering system, etc.

The RTO's response shows that as many as 104 rickshaws were given the certificates in a single day on July 12 this year. On the same day, 14 buses and 26 trucks were also shown a green signal. "If one has to carry out all the tests properly it will take at least 15 minutes for each vehicle to be okayed. Which means 35 hours to test 140 vehicles! But officials at the RTO carry out these tests in a matter of eight hours. It is next to impossible," Karve said, claming that many of the vehicles get passed without tests.

Karve alleged that agents working in the RTO fool the customers in the name of providing fitness certificates. Such a practice has only added to the illegal activities at the RTO. Karve has registered a complaint with the state secretary for transport.

Regional Transport Officer (RTO) Chandrakant Kharatmal refuted Karve's observations. "All tests prescribed in the law are carried out. Besides, no illegal practices take place in the RTO. If a case is brought to our notice, we will take appropriate action against the guilty," he said.

On Karve's RTI application, Kharatmal said, "Once we had passed 750 rickshaws in a day. This could be done because we deployed additional staff. Besides, some are sample tests so the time required is less."hu

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RTI should not curb principles of other acts, says former CJI Balakrishnan

http://sify.com/news/rti-should-not-curb-principles-of-other-acts-says-former-cji-balakrishnan-news-national-kk3v4bhdidb.html

Former Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan on Friday said the Right to Information (RTI) should not curb the principles of other acts.

"Right to Privacy, just like Right to Information, Right to Privacy is also an important right, and independence of judiciary is an important thing. These are all basic constitutional principles; it should be protected. Just as Right to Information Act, any other constitutional valued principle should be protected," said Balakrishnan, while giving a mixed review to the Right to Information Act at a seminar held here today.

"Any information which even in regarding appointment of Chief Justices, the reputation of the Chief Justices, we get written opinion and we cannot divulge this to the public, I strongly objected to these but going strictly by the provisions of the Act, it is the provision we have to divulge some of the information. It could be misused," he added.

Balakrishnan, who is currently the Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), appreciated the right nonetheless stating that the right is a boon to the citizens of the country, as it allows participation from them and makes the administration accountable.

"Mainly it is intended to give the citizens the information regarding the spending of the public money. That is more crucial, public should be aware that each pie spent by the government, in what manner and how it is used, whether it is for the good of the people or is it for other strenuous reason. That is the purpose of the Act and to that extent it has worked well," he added.

Balakrishnan, however, stressed that the right needs improvisation.

"Some cosmetic changes are required in the Act, which probably in every legislation it is being hurriedly done and there is no intellectual discussion about any of the enactment in the parliament," he added.

The Right to Information Act was enacted in 2005 in the Parliament of India to provide for setting out the practical regime of right to information for citizens. (ANI)

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RTI law being grossly misused, says former CJI Balakrishnan

http://www.hindustantimes.com/RTI-law-being-grossly-misused-says-former-CJI-Balakrishnan/Article1-619545.aspx

Former chief justice of India KG Balakrishnan on Friday said the Right To Information (RTI) Act "was grossly misused" and needed amending to prevent the misuse. "It is time for introspection on the five-year-old RTI Act. It is grossly misused. Most of the applicants are applying the RTI not for public good, but for misuse," Balakrishnan said at a seminar on "RTI-Key to good governance", organised by the Institute of Secretariat Training and Management.

Balakrishnan, currently the chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), said the RTI needed some amendments to prevent the misuse.

"It is not that we need to abolish or discard the RTI Act. But some changes have to be made to prevent the misuse," he added.

The RTI law should help to ensure equitable and inclusive growth, he said, noting mere economic growth is not an achievement.

"Development should improve the well-being of the people, especially at the bottom line," he said, recalling how RTI activists in Rajasthan could expose those siphoning off public funds in the name of old age pension and widows pension.

Speaking at the event, Chief Information Commissioner A.N. Tiwari said RTI should be saved from "an upsurge of emotions".

Admitting that RTI had some weakness as it was the "outgrowth of judicial intervention and has a legalistic framework," he said the RTI Act was facing divergent challenges.

"On the one hand, the aspiration of people to access information was on the upswing while on the other hand, officials need confidentiality to run the system," he said.

Tiwari said there were different categories of people frequenting the RTI system.

"The first category is those who want to pull down the high and mighty and want to know whether wealth was amassed by the authorities or corruption was practised. The second set is those who want to know how the government used its discretion in policy matters," he said.

The third category, or "bread and butter" group, want to know about the fate of their provident fund accounts and pension papers, he said.

According to Tiwari, the fourth group, mostly officials facing vigilance probes or disciplinary actions, were misusing the RTI system most to find out the moves against them.

"These articulate, English-speaking, powerful group of bureaucrats are the biggest challenge to the RTI system," he said.

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Meenaxi Anand Chaudhry appointed Chief Information Commissioner of Haryana

http://www.punjabnewsline.com/content/meenaxi-anand-chaudhry-appointed-chief-information-commissioner-haryana/25477

Haryana Government has been appointed Meenaxi Anand Chaudhry as the Chief Information Commissioner of the state.

Haryana Governor Friday administered the oath of office to Mrs Chaudhry in a simple ceremony at Haryana Raj Bhawan, Chandigarh. The Chief Minister, Bhupinder Singh Hooda and the Chief Secretary, Urvashi Gulati were also present in the function.

Chaudhry had retired from the post of Chief Secretary on April 30, 2006 and was later appointed as State Information Commissioner on May 9, 2006 and since then she had been serving on this post.

The Minister of State for Agriculture and Cooperation,Sukhbir Kataria, Advocate General, Hawa Singh Hooda, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister, Mr Chattar Singh, Additional Principal Secretaries to Chief Minister, Dr K. K. Khandelwal and Mr Shiv Raman Gaur, Member of Haryana Public Service Commission, R. K. Sheokand, the Officiating Chairman of Haryana Staff Selection Commission, Vijay Chug, MLA B.B. Batra and Secretary to Governor, Mahendra Kumar were present on the occasion.

Later while interacting with the media persons, the newly appointed Chief Information Commissioner said that she had been associated with the Information Commission for the last four and a half years. Her priorities were to implement the Right to Information Act effectively, with transparency and in a simple manner. The Act had been implemented for the last about five years and the people of Haryana were quite aware about it as a large number of applications were received from the urban as well as rural areas for obtaining information. The people not only seek information on their personal matters but also on the welfare works such as power, schools and roads.

She said that the First Information Officers and the Public Information Officers of all the departments were functioning very efficiently as the Commission was receiving very less percentage of applications. People were being satisfied with the information received from the First Information Officers and the Public Information officers.

She said that some problems arise in providing information from old records; even then efforts were also made in this regard. It had become necessary to manage and maintain old records. Stressing upon the need of the departments to upload the basic information concerning their departments on the departmental websites, she said that it would facilitate the people to have the information easily and it would bring transparency and reduce the work of the Commission.

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