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
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 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.
- The matter can be hand written, or typed. There is
no compulsion of typing the content
- The application has to be legible and easy to read
- While asking for information there is no restriction on
number of pages
- 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.
- One may ask as many short questions that he / she
may like to. But large information at a go is not preferred.
- 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
- A direct question beginning with ‘ Why’ should
never be asked, as it is liable to
be rejected for not being covered under
RTI
- Reasons behind an "administrative" or a
"quasi-judicial" decision under
Section 4(1)(d) shall be asked , especially if one is an "affected
person"
- If the information
sought is voluminous, it is better to
ask it in the form of CD to save
on cost
- One need
not need to write the reason for
asking the information
- 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
To
whom the application should be addressed?
- The details of Public Information officer, name, address etc.
whom one wants to apply to should be written.
- 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.
- The Head of Department will have to forward the application to the concerned Public Information Officer.
- 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:
1)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.
2) Reason for seeking information is not required
to be given;
3) Prescribed fees shall be paid (if not
belonging to the below poverty line category).
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:
- 30 days from the date of application
- 48 hours for information concerning the life or
liberty of a person
- 5 days shall be added to the above response time,
in case the application for information is given to Assistant Public
Information Officer.
- 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).
- 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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