Reena, a single mother, has been unable to get Scheduled Caste certificates for her children as her RTI (Right to Information) application filed in 2016, still remains unanswered.
“I had applied for Scheduled Caste certificates for my children but was told by the Revenue Department that the caste certificate of the father needs to be provided. In 2016, I filed the RTI application seeking information on the documents to be provided by a single mother.
“Despite orders of the appellate authority, till date, neither has the PIO (Public Information Officer) complied with the order nor has my matter been taken up for disposal,” said Ms. Reena, resident of a slum in Dakshinpuri in New Delhi.
She was speaking at a public hearing on the functioning of Information Commissions (IC) across the country that saw the participation of people from 14 States.
Also read: Do you know how to file an RTI plea?
A study conducted by the Delhi-based research and advocacy organisation, Centre for Equity Studies, and citizens’ group Satark Nagrik Sangathan had highlighted several issues, including lack of transparency and skewed composition of the ICs, inadequate imposition of penalties, and the issue of delayed responses.
“The State Information Commission (SIC) is functioning with only one commissioner, even though nearly 14,000 appeals and complaints are pending with it. Because of the massive backlog, it is impossible to get a date before at least a year. This can be seen as a tactic of the government to dissuade people from filing RTIs as applicants are bound to lose patience due to the delayed response,” said Abey George from Kerala.
Not functioning in A.P.
Chakradhar, an RTI activist from Andhra Pradesh, said the State has not had a functional SIC for the last 11 months.
The report, which evaluates the functioning of ICs between January 2016 and October 2017, states that as on November 1, 2017, the estimated time for the disposal of an appeal or complaint is the highest in West Bengal, at 43 years.
