RTI AWARENESS

I believe that the passage of this bill will see the dawn of a new era in our processes of governance, an era of performance and efficiency, an ear which will ensure that benefits of growth flow to all sections of our people, an era which will eliminate the scourge of corruption, an era which will bring the common man's concern to the heart of all processes of governance, an era which will truly fulfill the hopes of the founding fathers of our Republic.
Shri. Manmohan Singh,1

The objective of the RTI Act (as enshrined in its preamble) is to establish a practical regime for citizens to access information held by Public Authorities. This in turn will lead to increased transparency and accountability at the Public Authorities. More than three years have passed since the enactment of the RTI Act and it is the right time to take stock of what has been achieved by giving access to information held by Public Authorities to the citizens.2 There have been many discussions and debates about the effectiveness and impact of the Act. This paper examines the effectives of the Act.

INTRODUCTION
In order to promote transparency and accountability in administration across government departments, the Indian Parliament enacted the Right to Information Act (henceforth referred to as Act) in the year 2005. The Act, which came into force on 12 October 2005 empowers Indian citizens to seek information from a Public Authority and is aimed at making the Government and its functionaries more accountable and responsible. The Act has now been in operation for over five years and has benefited many, including the poor and the underprivileged. It is a matter of pride that we have given to ourselves, a tool which has the potential to usher in transparency, and reduce corruption.3

Prime Minister of India in his intervention speech on RTI bill debate in Lok Sabha in May 2005 rti.gov.in/rticorner/studybypwc/progress_made.pdf 3 RTI Call Centre and Portal Project, Request For Proposal - Volume I, Pdf
2

1|P age

In the last three years since the Right of Information Act has come into being, several attempts have been made by state governments, public authorities, Information commissions and nongovernment organizations to implement the Act as per its letter and spirit. 4 The Indian Right to Information, Act 2005 is one of the most advanced Information legislations in the world. In India, after many deliberations over the years, the RTI Act was passed by the parliament in October 12, 2005, thus opening up the governance processes of our country to the public. The Act is based on the principle that all government information is the property of people.5 It takes democracy to the grass root level and is also a step towards ensuring participatory governance in the country.6 RTI Act is a source of strength for all citizenry as it would ensure timely response to their information needs on government functioning and lead to greater transparency in governance. Right to Information (RTI) refers to the right of every citizen to access information held by or under the control of public authorities. Information is crucial for good governance as it reflects and captures Government activities and processes. It is said that information is the oxygen of democracy.7 If people do not know what is happening in their society, if the actions of those who rule them are hidden, then they cannot take a meaningful part in the affairs of the society. Access to information not only promotes openness, transparency and accountability in administration, but also facilitates active participation of people in the democratic governance process.8

Identify best practices in the implementation of RTI Act, 2005 Final Understanding the Key Issues and Constraints in implementing the RTI Act, pdf 6 projectvijay.blogspot.in/2009/10/right-to-information-act-2005-mission.html 7 wcd.nic.in/rightinformation/worldbank-rti.pdf 8 cgg.gov.in/publicationdownloads2a/18.Report%20on%20Mass%20Awareness.pdf
5

2|P age