‘‘THREE areas where RTI needs to be used are anomalies in ration cards and public distribution system, voter list problems and slum removal and their relocation,’’ said former prime minister V.P. Singh while speaking during the Second National Convention of the Right to Information (RTI) today.
Singh presided over the the concluding ceremony.
The right-to-information campaign is being headed by Magsaysay winner Aruna Roy, columnist Ajit Bhattacharjee, lawyer Prashant Bhushan, environmentalist and teacher Shekhar Singh, writer Kuldip Nayar, activist Dunu Roy and Arvind Kejriwal of Parivartan.
‘‘A true parivartan (change) in public life does not come about through change of government every five years but through change in the public mindset. Governments run only because of the lack of information among the masses, which is ensured through Acts like the Official Secrets Act. Information that is held back citing ‘public good’ actually protects political or personal benefits,’’ said Singh.
Roy also presented the Delhi Declaration on the occasion.
‘‘We demand that the National Right to Information Act be passed immediately. The Act should be people-friendly and any information relevant to ordinary citizens should not be deemed an official secret. It should provide for punitive measures against non-complying officials. This will empower democratic processes and people’s participation in governance,’’ read out Roy from the Delhi Declaration.
The campaign has come a long way since 2001 when it was first held at Beawar in Rajasthan.
The second national convention saw participation from 20 states and over 200 organisations.
‘‘Starting from a small ration shop by the corner to blatant violation of all rights in Jammu & Kashmir and the North Eastern states, the urgency and need for RTI to be made stronger is everywhere around us. RTI alone can give us a true democracy — transparent and accountable,’’ said Aruna Roy.
Arvind Kejriwal who has actively been campaigning for the act in Delhi, said: ‘‘Only 3,200 RTI applications have been filed in the Capital in the last three years despite a 1.5 crore-strong population. In USA, 32 lakh RTI applications are filed in one year alone. So you can see, where we stand in terms of our awareness of our rights.’’