[HumJanenge] RTI - PENALTY AND ON-LINE PAYMENT FACILITY FOR NRI's

Andhra Pradesh - RTI: Rs.1.22 lakh penalty imposed on PIOs

Information Commissioner C. Madhukar Raj imposed a penalty of Rs.1,22,500 on Public Information Officers in 19 cases in the month of December.

Show cause notices

The Information Commissioner who heard and disposed of 79 show cause notices cases, imposed fine on the PIOs for failing to act and deal diligently with the applications received from the citizens for information under the Right To Information Act.

A release from the State Information Commission said that Mr.Madhukar Raj heard a total of 253 appeal and complaint cases and disposed of 251 cases in December. In the last six months, he heard 1,429 appeal and complaint cases and disposed of 1,427 cases and imposed penalties against PIOs in 128 cases.

Application fee

Meanwhile, the State Information Commission clarified that a request for obtaining information should be accompanied by an application fee either by affixing court fee stamps or by way of cash or post order or Demand Draft.

While no application will be charged in respect of public authorities at village level, Rs.5 will be collected per application at Mandal level public authorities.

In other areas, the application fee would be Rs.10 per application.

 

 

2013 wakes up to online payment of RTI applications for Indians abroad

The final trigger for the launch of e-IPO (electronic Indian Postal Order) that would facilitate Indian citizens living abroad to pay the Rs10 fee for filing a RTI application came when on 12 December 2012, Sujata Chaudhury, general manager of Business Development & Marketing Directorate of Department of Posts set a deadline of 15 January 2013 and asked the National Informatics Centre (NIC) to treat this "as most urgent" and to complete the work on a "war footing."

 

Ms Chaudhury's letter states: "Now it has been decided at the highest level that the facility of accepting RTI fee by generating e-IPO through the e-post office portal is to be launched by 15 January 2013. Therefore, it is requested to take accelerated steps to complete the task much before the targeted time fixed earlier. This may be treated as most urgent and work be done on a war footing."

 

Delhi-based activist Commodore (retd) Lokesh Batra, who steered the campaign for Indians living abroad in several countries, is ecstatic at this citizen victory and congratulates the Department of Posts for completing the project in record time. He had filed more than 150 RTI applications in various relevant departments since 2008 and consistently pressurized the government to provide online payment facilities for RTI fees.

 

States Commodore Batra: "If all goes well as per the plans of the 'Department of Posts' (DOP) for launching of e-IPO for RTI fee, Indian citizens abroad  will be able to use their 'Right to Know' before this Republic Day." On 31 December 2012, Commodore Batra went through the complete process of the functioning of e-IPO at the Department of Posts and says that if not 15^th January, then by 25^th January it is sure to be launched. When the scheme becomes a reality, it will be a huge achievement for Indian citizens abroad who have been pressing the government for the last five years to facilitate them in nation building by exercising their right to know.

 

 The final step of this issue has been languishing since March 2012 when the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) gave its "no objection" to the government to start an online payment facility for RTI fees for NRIs but the Department of Posts was waiting for orders to put a system in order.

 

Now that it has happened, soon the RTI applicant abroad would be able to use a credit or debit card to pay the Rs10 fee. Axis Bank is the payment gateway provider. The RTI applicant living abroad would be required to log on to the Department of Posts' website and then register (if it is his or her first time) and click on the "RTI counter". He/she would have to upload a copy of his/her passport after filling the RTI application. Then he/she would be required to pay the fees through the electronic postal order. Thereafter, the RTI application would be sent to the relevant public information officer of the department that the applicant is seeking information from. The CPIO (Chief Public Information Officer) can verify the IPO number by logging on to the ePO portal.
 

Commodore Batra had been continuously filing RTI applications since 2008 to relevant government departments which handle this issue like the ministry of finance, the Department of Personnel and Training (which implements the RTI Act), the Department of Posts (which can make e- payment possible), the National Advisory Council (NAC) and the Prime Minister's Office (PMO). While initially the DoP had taken initiative to hasten the process, the RBI was sitting over it. Thereafter the DoP was waiting for a green signal from the ministry.