RTI pleas pile up at information commissions

Vacant posts and inadequate members are taking a toll on the transparency regime, and it is resulting in pendency in the resolution of RTI pleas.

Details:

• As per the latest update-
  • About 3.15 lakh complaints or appeals are pending with 26 information commissions across India.
  • The highest number of pending cases was in Maharashtra at 99,722 followed by Uttar Pradesh at 44,482.

Defunct Information Commissions:

• Two out of 29 information commissions across the country are completely defunct.
• Three information commissions were found to be non-functional for varying lengths of time for the period under review.
• Four of them are headless at the moment.
• Only 5% of the positions are occupied by women.
• Jharkhand and Tripura have been completely defunct for 29 months and 15 months respectively.
• Several information commissions, including the Central Information Commission, are working at reduced capacity with less than the stipulated number of members being in office.

Central Information Commission:

• The Central Information Commission was established by the Central Government in 2005, under the provisions of the Right to Information Act (2005).
• It is not a constitutional body.
• The Commission consists of a Chief Information Commissioner and not more than ten Information Commissioners.
• While inquiring, the Commission has the powers of a civil court in respect of summoning, requiring documents, etc.

Problem Areas:

• Not Imposing penalties: Commissions did not impose penalties in 95% of the cases where penalties were potentially imposable.
• Large Backlog of cases: The large backlog of cases has built up, resulting in a long waiting time for disposal, as governments have failed to make appointments of information commissioners in a timely manner.
• Tardy disposal rates: In several commissions, there is a lack of transparency in their functioning which is resulting in a tardy disposal rate.
• Vacant Posts: Out of a total of 165 posts of information commissioners, 41 are vacant, including two chief State information commissioners.
• Women’s Representation: There are only 5% (only 8) of women information commissioners in the country.

Way Forward:

• Doing away with casual attitude: Commissions are becoming parking lots for retired bureaucrats and the casual attitude by PIO/First Appellate Authority.
• Digitization of process: The entire system needs digitization. Only 11 information commissions out of 29 provide e-filing facilities for RTI applications or appeals, but only five are functional.
• Digital RTI portal: The digital RTI portal (website or mobile app) can deliver more efficient and citizen-friendly services, which are not possible through conventional mode. This will be beneficial for both transparency seekers and the government.