In our Country, whenever a person wants to
get any permission any certificate etc, he has to wait for ages or
alternatively grease the palms of the officials and get the things done. Whenever
any file is submitted, the public are at a loss to know about the fate of their
files and to add insult to injury, corruption is ruling the department’s right
from the lowest level to the top level.
With the enactment of the Right to Information Act, 2005, by the Parliament, a ray of hope has emerged in the
minds of the Public to get the Official machinery work in a corrupt free
atmosphere since; this Act gives power and paves the way for the honest Citizen
to get their Official work processed without undue delay. If used properly,
this Act could become a weapon to bring down the corruption in Government Departments.
A very encouraging development as far as this Act is concerned is that it is
just not restricted to Government and Municipal Corporations, but also includes
all Public Authorities viz. Organizations, NGOs and other bodies which are
financed by the Government. The Right to Information Act is indeed a very
beneficial Act for the common man and if used in a proper way, it may lead to
less sleaze and more transparency.
The Right to Information Act, 2005 which has
come into with effect from 12th Oct 2005 could help the property industry to a great extent since the land and building related documents which could not be
procured easily from the Government Departments viz. Taluk Office, Corporation
Office, Sub-Registrar Office, Survey Department, Assistant Commissioner's
Office etc., without greasing the palms of the Officials, can now be insisted
on to be furnished, studied and verified well in advance before embarking on
any project by invoking the provisions of the Right to Information Act, Section
2(j) of the Act defines the 'Right to Information’ as:
'Right of Information' is the right to
acquire information accessible under the Act which is held by or under the
control of any Public Authority and includes the right to:
a) Inspection of work, documents, records
b) Taking notes, extracts or certified copies
of documents or records
c) Taking certified samples of material
d) Obtaining information in the form of
diskettes, floppies, tapes, video cassettes or in any other electronic mode or
through printouts where such information is stored in a computer or in any
other device.
Thus, by invoking the provision of the Right
to Information Act, an Applicant who has been unsuccessful in getting his building
plan sanctioned or in case of inordinate delay in obtaining such sanction despite
the plan complying all the statutory requirements and Bye-Laws prescribed, can
now put the BBMP Administrative machinery to work speedily by seeking, inter
alia, the following questions to be answered by the Public Information Officer
of the Department.
a) What is the status of his plan?
b) How many other plans were submitted on the
day on which plans was submitted by him?
c) Out of those plans, how many have been
sanctioned?
d) What has happened to all the other plans?
Further, he is now entitled to ask for the
inspection of documents, records, take notes and obtain certified copies.
How to
write an application?
While filing an RTI application, the framing
of the questions is very important. A slight misunderstanding or vague questions gives the
PIO a chance to reject your
application. Follow these guidelines:
a)A white sheet of paper shall be used to write an application. There is no need to use a Note-sheet, or the Court stamp paper.
b)The matter can be hand written, or typed.
There is no compulsion of typing the content
c)The application has to be legible and easy to read.
d)While asking for information there is no restriction on
number of pages.
e)There is no restriction on number of questions that can be asked in one application.However, it is advisable to ask with limited set of questions and
only related questions with one application.
f)One may ask as many short questions that he
/ she may like to. But large information at a go is not preferred.
g)In the application always the name and the
signature has to be written, and there is no need to mention one’s post/designation as any
citizen has the right to information.
h)A direct question beginning with ‘ Why’
should never be asked, as it is liable to
be rejected for not being covered under
RTI.
i)Reasons behind an
"administrative" or a "quasi-judicial" decision under Section 4(1)(d) shall be asked ,
especially if one is an "affected person".
j)If the information
sought is voluminous, it is better to
ask it in the form of CD to save on
cost.
k)One need not need to write the reason for asking the information.
l)The payment details like BC/DD/IPO number,
issuing bank/post office, date, cash receipt details etc., has to be given towards the end of the application.
a)The details of Public Information officer, name, address etc. whom
one wants to apply to
should be written.
b)In case there is a problem in locating the
Public Information Officer/Assistant
Public Information Officer, the RTI
application can be addressed to The Public Information
Officer, C/o Head of Department and sent to
the concerned Public Authority with the requisite application fee.
c)The Head of Department will have to forward the application to the concerned Public Information Officer.
d)The specific name of the Public Information Officer should not be mentioned on
the application form, as there is every chance that he might get transferred,
or a new person being designated in his place.
Application Procedure for requesting
information:
a)The Application should be in writing or through electronic means in English, Hindi or in the official language of the
area, to the PIO specifying particulars of the information sought for.
b)Reason for seeking information is not
required to be given;
c)Prescribed fees shall be paid (if not
belonging to the below poverty line category).
How to submit a RTI Application?
a)Personally,
by hand
b)Registered
Post Acknowledgement Due (AD)
c)Speed Post (A postal department service)
d)Do not use ordinary post, private courier
companies, etc. since these will not provide you with a confirmed proof of
delivery
Time limit to get the information:
a)30 days from the date of application
b)48 hours for information concerning the
life or liberty of a person
c)5 days shall be added to the above response
time, in case the application for information is given to Assistant Public Information Officer.
d)If the interests of a third party are
involved then time limit will be 40 days (maximum period + time given to the
party to make representation).
e)Failure to provide information within the
specified period is a deemed refusal.
Information, which affect the sovereignty and
integrity of India or security, strategic, scientific and economic interests of
the State in relation with Foreign State and certain information as mentioned
in Sections 8 & 9 of the Act may be denied to be furnished. By invoking the
provisions of this Act by the Public, the Administrative Machinery can be put
on the right track which in turn can help in the reduction of corrupt
practices.
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