New Delhi: The Central Information
Commission has received more than 4,100 complaints against
Railways and Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) officials
while disposing off RTI requests.
According to official data, about 2,585 complaints were
filed against Railways with the CIC followed by 1,580 against
MCD and 1,439 against Ministry of Telecommunications.
Besides, 1,104 complaints were filed against passport
office, 1,103 against Ministry of Human Resource Development,
966 against State Bank of India, 957 against Employees
Provident Fund Organisation, 791 against Ministry of Home
Affairs and 767 against Defence Ministry among others, it
said.
The data compiled by the Department of Personnel and
Training, nodal agency to oversee implementation of Right to
information Act, has 896 public authorities against whom
complaints were filed with the CIC since its inception in 2005
till November 24, 2010.
It said 699 complaints were filed against Government of
NCT of Delhi, 294 against Prime Minister Office, 187 against
Delhi Development Authority and 171 against Delhi Police.
According to RTI Act 2005, a citizen has right to access
information under the control of public authorities, which are
government departments, ministries, banks and public sector
units among others.
The complaint against denial of information or providing
insufficient information can first be filed with the concerned
department's First Appellate Authority and then to the Second
Appellate Authority which is CIC for central government
departments and State Information Commissions for State
government controlled public authorities.
"The data give details of complaints filed with the
Central Information Commission. There may be some variation in
it since many public authorities are still to upload case or
appeals details on the website," a DoPT official said.
He said the complaints are dealt expeditiously by
concerned public authorities and the CIC.
The DoPT has asked all departments to make use of
Information Technology to update and inform people about
various matters including information status among others
through website and other means of mass media.
Whereas, 101 complaints each were filed against Telecom
Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), President Secretariat
and Ministry of Science & Technology, 96 were filed against
Ministry of Panchayati Raj, 88 against Hindustan Petroleum
Corporation Limited (HPCL), 87 against Ministry of Tourism and
36 against Central Vigilance Commission among others, the data
said.
The government has initiated the process of filling
vacant posts of Information Commissioners in the CIC to ease
work load. At present, five posts of ICs are lying vacant in
the transparency watchdog.
PTI
First Published: Friday, November 11, 2011, 15:09