State Information Commissioners Badruddin K. and Dr.Harish Kumar said that the Right to Information (RTI) Act should be viewed as a safeguard for transparent governance rather than a hurdle to government functioning, while addressing officials at an awareness programme held at the Kodagu Zilla Panchayat Hall in Madikeri recently.
Information Commissioner Badruddin said the RTI Act, though simple, carries serious responsibility and stressed that information must be provided within 30 days. He cautioned officials against giving false information, advised them not to contact RTI applicants directly, and emphasised proactive disclosure of information on official websites as per the rules. He said around 60 lakh RTI applications are pending across the country, including about 38,000 in Kodagu district, and called for efforts to reduce the pendency to zero.
Information Commissioner Dr. Harish Kumar said the RTI Act, implemented in India in 2005, aims to ensure transparency, efficiency, and good governance. He warned that failure to provide information within the stipulated time could attract a fine of up to ?25,000 and, in serious cases, imprisonment of up to five years. He stressed the importance of proper record management and said BPL applicants are entitled to free information up to 100 pages.
Kodagu Deputy Commissioner Venkat Raja said the RTI Act should be understood as a tool to assist officials in discharging their duties transparently. He said digitisation under the Land Security Scheme is underway in the Revenue Department, with Kodagu being the first district in the state to implement it.
Zilla Panchayat CEO Anand Prakash Meena, District SP K. Ramarajan, Additional Deputy Commissioner R. Aishwarya, Additional SP Dinesh Kumar, Assistant Commissioner Nitin Chakki, and officials from various departments were present.
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