IF information is empowerment, then the Right to Information Act will do just that for the citizen— rich or poor.
So, while information kiosks in urban areas will spread the good word about the Act, lax and uncooperative public information officers (PIO) stand to face a fine of as much as Rs 25,000.
Unveiling these and a slew of other measures for proper use of the RTI Act, State Information Commissioner Suresh Joshi said he has set a deadline of six months for all PIOs in the state to undergo proper training to acquaint themselves with the finer points of the Act.
In his first interaction with the Press after taking over last month, Joshi reminded the people about the power of the legislation. “The citizen is so empowered today, that he or she is equivalent to an MLA. (That’s) because in the Assembly, Question Hour is crucial for the MLA to procure information. Thanks to the RTI, the common man can get the same information but with much less drama.”
Joshi said of the 33,500 applications received under the Maharashtra Right to Information Act (MRTI) - it has been repealed after the Central RTI Act came into force on October 12 - 29,400 have been answered. “The queries that remain, will be dealt as per the MRTI Act and not the new Act so that we can begin with a clean slate,” he clarified.
Joshi urged citizens, especially those from economically backward sections, to come forward and invoke the RTI in a big way.
“The new Act grants the citizen the right to inspect files and citizens can now even scrutinise notings (comments) of officers in these files,” Joshi said.
Joshi also appealed to government departments to begin suo motu disclosures through notice boards, brochures or the official website.
Joshi came out strongly against PIOs who indulge in procrastination or deliberately provide wrong or insufficient information. “Such PIOs will be penalised at the rate of Rs 250 per day and I can slap a penalty of as much as Rs 25,000. So, PIOs must ensure that they provide quality information and within the given deadline of 30 days (which can be further extended if valid reasoning is given).’’
Joshi also reminded citizens of their responsibilities. He called for brief and precise RTI applications. ‘‘Please don’t indulge in writing prefaces or essays.’’
On RTI being used as a blackmailing tool, Joshi retorted, ‘‘Let the Act be used first and then we will deal with those who misuse it.’’ Urging the media, social organisations and NGOs to disseminate information on RTI, he said that an authentic Marathi translation of the Act — prepared by the state law secretary and sent to the Centre — will soon be available for the public.
What’s new
* Information kiosks in urban centres
* Training of PIOs by YASHADA
* Authentic Marathi translation of the new RTI Act