-Hindustan Times Responses have been elusive on critical issues, including health care infra, PM Cares fund, schemes, and migrants In the lethal jaws of a pandemic, when lives and livelihoods are at stake, the information law of a democracy is expected to live up to its responsibilities — to empower the citizens and to ensure transparency and accountability. Free flow of information is an essential component of crisis management. And this is...

-The Hindu Auditor denied access to GST Network The crucial question about how and where auditors should get access to GST data continues to hang fire, even as hundreds of CAG auditors are being put through specialised training in anticipation of the implementation of the new tax regime from July 1. Various government officials, including ministers, have been insisting that the proposed tax regime will come into force as scheduled. The GST Network...

-DNA Dr Manmohan Singh rarely speaks his mind and when he speaks, people listen, as claimed by US president Barack Obama. But this time, a rather reserved-in-speech prime minister is at the receiving end for speaking his mind on the Right to Information (RTI) Act from various quarters. At a recent Convention of Central Information Commissioners, Singh cautioned against frivolous and vexatious use of the RTI. While the debate on the uses...

-The Economic Times The government is planning to launch a probe into the alleged fudging of television viewership data by TAM Media Research after several complaints from broadcasters. A top official in the Union information and broadcasting ministry, who did not want to be identified, said the government has received a lot of complaints from TAM in the past. "A lot of people have been raising concerns because of which we are...

Delhi high court to hear central bank challenge to CIC order seeking information on defaults by top industrialists The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has challenged an order by the Central Information Commission (CIC) asking the central bank to disclose names of the top 100 industrialists who have defaulted on loan repayments. In a writ petition to the Delhi high court, which is scheduled to be heard on 29 May, the central...