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Submitted by Divya Jyoti Jaipuriar
RTI Act powerful tool for transparency
By A Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI, July 5 – With the emergence of corruption as the greatest public enemy, the relevance of the Right to Information Act has become all the more relevant in a region like India’s Northeast. The Act could act as a tool to usher in probity in public affairs and also pinpoint accountability to all government functionaries and organisations receiving substantial government funds.
Recently appointed Governor of Meghalaya and former State Information Commissioner, Assam, RS Mooshahary said this in Guwahati today.
Delivering a talk on the RTI Act in a meet organised by the Gauhati Management Association, Mooshahary said that it was not enough that people received information through the process, but used that knowledge to identify corrupt practices and persons.
Spelling out the Act in some detail, he said that it was a powerful tool that was brought in for greater transparency and accountability in governance. Because of its marked autonomy, the Information Commissions are held in high regard by various government departments.
People could either approach the Public Information Officers in departments concerned to seek information, or approach the head of the office if there were not any PIOs. In case they failed to receive information, or believed that the information provided was doctored they could approach the State Information Commissioner.
Significantly, he revealed that even though in most of the cases the authorities had 30 days to dispense information, in the event of “life and liberty,” government officials must provide information within a 48-hour time frame.
He cited several instances, which showed how information was extracted from several government offices even though they were initially reluctant to provide it. In one case, gross irregularities were found in the working of the Public Distribution System of Golaghat district.
Finally, information acquired through RTI applications were able to help investigation, which led to the arrest of several officials and streamlining of the system. This has been an eye-opening development for several other NGOs working in Assam.
Mooshahary was of the belief that the RTI has been able to make a change in the mindset of some people as well as officials who are aware of its power. Officials now know that whatever notes they made on files could now be examined by a member of the public.
With a note of regret, he mentioned that the Assam Government has not done much to spread public awareness about the Act. He said that much better awareness was necessary for the Act to be become a real harbinger of change.
Submitted by sadique mannan
a story in assam tribune:Guwahati, Tuesday, July 4, 2006 CITYGUWAHATI, July 3 – The belief that no good piece of legislation can bring in any change in the practice of withholding official information concerning public interest, unless the officials running the administration become committed to democratic values, has again been proved right.Despite the Right to Information (RTI) Act being in force in the State, the Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) has denied a citizen the information he had asked for on the plea that he had not applied for the purpose properly.According to Ashok Medhi, a resident of Md Tayebullah Road, Dighalipukhuri East area in the city, while turning down his request the GMDA authorities did not comply with the provision of the said Act, which provided for holding a hearing to settle any of the requests. He described the developments concerning his complaints and requests as products of the pro-builder approach of the GMDA.The contention of Medhi was that the GMDA had allowed some builders to construct a five-storey building on the Fatik Chandra Road area despite knowing that the land area of the plot on which the building was built did not conform to the stipulation. The builders could manage to enhance the land area of the plot by using permission from the Additional Deputy Commissioner of Kamrup district. In fact, the Additional Deputy Commissioner of Kamrup district has no locus standi to deal any matter concerning the Kamrup (Metro) district, Medhi said.Initially, Medhi was denied any information about the building and the permission granted for its construction. When the CEO of the GMDA was approached then under the provisions of the Right to Information Act, the former provided Medhi with some information. But later on detail information was denied to him on the plea that his application was not made under the provision of the appropriate section, said Medhi.Earlier, The GMDA has turned a deaf ear to the complaint that the builders have violated the floor area ratio provision. Again, the builders have managed to convert the hind portion of the building into a six-storey structure flouting all legal provisions. Medhi argues citing the GMDA permission for the building that the plot on the Fatik Chandra Road is marked as a high-density residential area, where the floor area limit is 3,888 square feet per floor. But the builders have surpassed that floor area restriction on each of the floors up to the fifth floor and on top of all these, they have added the sixth floor to the hind part of the building, Medhi said.