In the five years of the Right to Information Act, activists who use it have faced reprisal across the country. OCTOBER 2010 marks the fifth anniversary of the Right to Information (RTI) Act. The Act and its implementation have been described in both administrative circles and civil society as “revolutionary” , “a blow for transparency”, “a check on corrupt practices” and “a people's intervention tool with tremendous impact”. Social activists and...
More »SEARCH RESULT
Total Matching Records found : 5468
Revenge attacks by Lyla Bavadam
In Maharashtra, attacks on citizen-activists have increased with the greater use of RTI; four activists have been killed in the last seven months IN the late 1970s, a woman named Shobha Shirodkar was the victim of a hit-and-run in Mumbai. It was no accident. It was a case of murder because Shobha, who was the principal of a prestigious School in the city, had opposed the land mafia and was believed...
More »Ponds on paper
The RTI application spilled out mind-boggling inconsistencies “THIS is our NREGS [National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme] farm pond [water harvesting structure],” says 24-year-old Dhanpati with a flourish. Puzzled by his rhetorical declaration, I ask him: “Where is it?” “It is this. You are standing on it,” he says with a wry smile. The farm pond, one of the agricultural revival measures planned by the Central government under the scheme, has not been dug at...
More »Rape, torture by landlords forces Karnataka villagers to flee by Senthalir S
It's the untold tale of a village in the grip of the feudal system, and a quiet revolt brewing. Budihalli village of Karnataka's Chitradurga district is a glaring example of caste discrimination and bondage, with a yawning gap between communities. Here, landlords hold sway. They allegedly rape and torture women of lower castes while the men work as bonded labourers, paying off debts accumulated over generations. Breaking the stranglehold, 25...
More »Children, mother deprived of food schemes: Report
Food entitlement schemes that are aimed to provide food security to children are not being properly implemented in the Left Front-ruled West Bengal. According to Food Entitlements in West Bengal: Survey on Supreme Court Orders, about 41.2 lakh children, which comprises nearly 40 per cent children in the age group of zero to six years are not covered under the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS). The ICDS is one of...
More »
