STATE TIMES NEWS
NEW DELHI: Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh, who is also Minister Incharge DoPT to which the Central Information Commission is affiliated, disclosed on Friday that consequent to the passing of J&K Reorganisation Act 2019, the J&K Right to Information Act 2009 and the Rules there under have since been repealed and the Central Right to Information Act 2005 and the Rules there under were enforced from 31.10.2019.
As a consequence to this, the difference now is that, unlike in the past, even a non-Domicile or a non-State subject of Jammu & Kashmir is entitled to file RTI related to UT issues or agencies.
Addressing the 14th Special General Body Meeting of National Federation of Information Commissions of India (NFICI) at CIC Bhawan here, Dr Jitendra Singh lauded the Central Information Commission for achieving consistent decline in pendency with corresponding rise in disposal of the Right To Information (RTI) appeals. He said, he was pleased to note that the pendency reduced from about 40,000 cases last year to around 27,000 cases at present, while the disposal of cases increased from 17017 in 2020-21 to 28901 in 2021-22.
The Union Minister said, ever since the Modi Government came to power in 2014, Transparency, Accountability and Citizen-Centricity became the hallmark of the Governance Model. He said that in the last eight years, every conscious decision was taken to strengthen the Independence and Resources of the Information Commissions.
The Minister noted that empowered citizens are an important pillar of democracy and the Central Information Commission will continue to work for empowering the people through information.
Dr Jitendra Singh said, transparency and accountability are very essential for democratic and participative governance and all steps will be taken to fulfil the aspirations and expectations of the people of India. He said, today all major decisions and information are in public domain and we have achieved transparency with credibility, which is the hallmark of the Modi Government.
Dr Singh said, the unprecedented pandemic posed a serious challenge to many Information Commissions including the Central Information Commission, but earnest efforts were made by CIC and SICs to dispose RTI second appeals and complaints and some Commissions even exceeded pre-Pandemic figures of disposal during certain periods. He also mentioned that June 2020 saw higher disposal of cases in CIC in comparison to the pre-pandemic year of 2019. The Minister said, this became possible due to the innovative approach of shifting into virtual mode (audio-video) for hearing and disposal of cases.
Dr Jitendra also pointed out that it was during the challenging times of pandemic in May, 2020, the Central Information Commission started entertaining, hearing and disposing of RTIs from the newly created Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, through virtual means. He said, applicants from J&K and Ladakh were allowed to file RTI applications from home and even for appeals to the CIC.
Dr Singh referred to a number of new initiatives taken under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to improve the functioning of the Central Information Commission and to ensure prompt disposal of RTI appeals. The Minister also noted that it was during the Modi government that a 24 hours’ portal service was introduced for e-filing of the RTI applications during any part of the day or night and from any part of the country or abroad. It was during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s tenure, he said, that the office of Central Information Commissioner was shifted to its own exclusive office complex.
19 States are taking part in today’s 14th Special General Body Meeting of National Federation of Information Commissions of India (NFICI) at CIC Bhawan in ensuring proper administration of the RTI regime as well as speedy disposal of cases thus reducing pendency.