-Business Standard Amendments will bar whistleblowers from disclosing info which govt and its agencies are exempted from providing under rti Act The NDA government has proposed to substantially reduce the kind of information the whistle-blowers will be able to disclose under the Whistleblowers Protection Act, 2011. The government has tabled an amendment bill in the Lok Sabha that reduces the mandate of the law considerably. If the amendment is passed, the whistle-blower would no...

-NDTV Mumbai: Congress President Sonia Gandhi today sharply attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government in Parliament and outside. In a statement in the Lok Sabha, Mrs Gandhi criticized what she called the "deplorable lapse" in not filling key posts, including that of the Chief Information Commissioner, which has been vacant for eight months. Stating that over 39,000 appeals under the rti or Right to Information Act, remain pending, she also used...

-Newslaundry.com According to the data provided by the Ministry of Finance in reply to an rti application, only 8% of all the stalled projects are because of Land Acquisition reasons. The reasons for 1/3rd of the stalled projects are not known. The amendments to the Land Acquisition act (Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act) are being touted by many in the Government as a game...

-The Economic Times NEW DELHI: The land acquisition law passed by the previous government may not be the villain of the piece when it comes to stalled projects, according to data generated by a Right to Information (rti) query. The Modi government's determination to amend the land acquisition law in the teeth of resistance from farmers and political parties has stemmed from the legislation's apparent role in just this — bringing projects...

-The Indian Express Files already piled up on the Chief Information Commissioner’s desk could take up to 2020 to clear. Delay in appointing the CIC hurts the objectives of both the rti Act and the PM’s pledge of good governance. The rti Act, 2005 provided for a Central Information Commission and State Information Commissions to deal with appeals and complaints against public authorities. Section 12 of the rti Act states, “The Central...