-TheWire.in The RTI Convention begs the question: who will save the RTI? Ideally, the 14th convention on the RTI, on October 12, where Central and state commissioners were present, should have resolved against the amendment which reduces their collective independence. However, I am surprised that even non-bureaucrat commissioners also did not raise their voice against it. The least a convention of commissioners could have done was to ask for information on the...
More »SEARCH RESULT
Effort worth emulation: On Rajasthan's public information portal
-The Hindu Rajasthan’s Jan Soochna portal is a step in the right direction for transparency in governance Fourteen years since the implementation of the groundbreaking Right to Information (RTI) Act, which has helped shed light on government works and administration, the launch of the “Jan Soochna Portal” (public information portal) by the Rajasthan government on Friday marks a milestone in increasing transparency and accountability in governance. The portal details various schemes run...
More »Incisive interventions that blunt the RTI's edge -Suhrith Parthasarathy
-The Hindu With the kernel of the Information Act under threat, the independence of the information commission is in peril When we describe India as a democracy what do we really mean? Are we referring merely to a system of popular sovereignty founded in universal adult franchise? Or are we suggesting something more — perhaps an assurance, grounded in the Constitution, of a set of rights, of the rights, among others, to...
More »National Population Register to include Aadhaar details -Rahul Tripathi
-The Economic Times Registrar General of India will ask UIDAI to verify biometric data of individuals NEW DELHI: The Registrar General of India will ask the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) to verify biometrics of individuals for inclusion in the recently revived National Population Register (NPR) programme, instead of collecting them afresh. A senior home ministry official told ET that this puts an end to the debate on which agency has primacy...
More »RTI amendment: Usurping powers from Legislature and States -M Sridhar Acharyulu
-Down to Earth The National Democratic Alliance government's move is an assault on the independence of information commissioners, writes former Central Information Commissioner M Sridhar Acharyulu Alas! I thought the Narendra Modi government is strong enough after its re-election. But now it is scared of the Right to Information (RTI) and the Chief Information Commission (CIC), as if they are monsters who can harm the power of the powerful rulers. The Information Commissioner...
More »