THE next time your RTI application is not accepted on the ground that you have paid the application fee by Indian Postal Order, you can protest. In a circular, the DoPT has warned those public authorities which have refused to accept the fees through Indian Postal Order, and said such an instance would result into imposition of penalty by the Central Information Commission.
Recently, there were instances in which Indian Postal Order was not accepted by a few public authorities. But according to Right to Information (Regulation of Fee and Cost) Rules, 2005, a person seeking information under the RTI Act, 2005 can make payment of fee for obtaining information by cash or demand draft or banker’s cheque or Indian Postal Order.
“Refusal to accept fee through the IPO may be treated as refusal to accept the application. It may result into imposition of penalty by the Central Information Commission,” the DoPT circular dated April 26, 2011 said. The circular further said that all public authorities must ensure that payment by IPO is not denied.
Action and Appointments
AC Pandey, joint secretary in the ministry of labour and employment has been appointed as chief vigilance officer in the ministry of labour and employment for a period of three years with effect from April 25, 2011 or until further orders. This change will be in addition to his charge as joint secretary in the ministry.
Significantly, in a press release, the concerned officer’s telephone numbers including his residence number were specifically mentioned.
No comments:
Post a Comment