All Public Authorities must display RTI appeals and replies on their websites

Ministries to put up RTI replies online from Oct 31

TNN | Oct 22, 2014, 04.29AM IST

NEW DELHI: Taking transparency to another level, the government on Tuesday directed all its ministries and departments to suo motu display RTI applications and responses thereof, on their respective websites from October 31.

However, the DoPT instructions in this regard do leave scope for withholding RTI replies that contain personal information relating to an individual. "It may be noted that RTI applications and appeals received and their responses relating to the personal information of an individual may not be disclosed if they do not serve any public interest," said the DoPT note circulated to all Union ministries and departments on Tuesday.

To facilitate uploading of RTI applications and appeals received and their responses on the website, a new feature has been added to the CPIO/FAA module on the 'RTI Online' portal on pilot basis for DoPT. Through this feature, an option is given to the central public information officers (CPIO) and first appellate authority (FAA) to upload the reply to RTI query and the first appeal respectively on to the department's website. This particular feature will now be extended to other ministries and departments as well. To display the RTI applications received in the ministry/department and the reply given using this feature, web services will be provided through a URL to each ministry or department by NIC or DoPT.

"The concerned ministry/department needs to consume this web service (by writing a program) to display the desired contest on its respective website," the DoPT note said while asking the ministries and departments to take the help of NIC or DoPT experts in this regard.

"An immediate action is requested so that the facility to upload the reply to RTI application and first appeal respectively on the website of the respective ministry/department may be started with effect from October 31, 2014," directed the DoPT. 

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Source: www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

No claim unsettled! Really?

Yesterday's ad by LIC promises to leave no claim unsettled. I hope it applies to the resigning ex-employees' dues too! Till then, we will keep reminding it, of its duty towards us too!

Citizens' Charter of LIC of India

   
    The Citizens' Charter of LIC of India conveys its commitment to all its stake-holders. It doesn't however, in my opinion, apply to its resigning employees, going by its lackadaisical and cruel treatment towards them. There is no grievance redressal machinery for them in the Corporation. A very sorry state of affairs, but who cares? Least of all, LIC!

58 saal, Vishwas ke, aur 18 saal, Vishwasghat ke! (For resigning ex-employees)


58 years of Trust, and 18 years of Betrayal! (For resigning ex-employees)

           
   
       

 

LIC Gazette Notification 2010 - Class II employees (Development Officers)

The same clause that applies for Class 1 Officers, which states that resigning employees are not eligible for arrears' payment, applies to Class II and Class III and IV of LIC and GIC employees too.

GIC comprises of 4 companies, New India Assurance, United India Assurance, National Insurance and Oriental Insurance Company. Besides, LICMF, GICHFL & LICHFL's employees would have also been affected by the same clause, which has been declared as ultra-vires by the Supreme Court in 2008. One can just imagine how many ex-employees, all together, in all these Life and Non-Life Public Sector insurance companies have been illegally deprived of their hard-earned dues! LIC has not divulged details regarding total number of ex-employees throughout the Corporation, since 1997, whose arrears have been repudiated and the amounts repudiated against each of their accounts, etc. in reply to my RTI application.

As even the Statutory Retirement benefits like Provident Fund and Gratuity would have been eligible for difference in payment as per revised rates, this repudiation, running to the tune of billions of rupees, is a scam of huge ramifications.

It is therefore very surprising that this issue has not been highlighted or debated about, anywhere in any print or electronic media, any time in the past, as per my knowledge, since 1997, when the first batch of payments to resigning ex-employees was repudiated.

I had sent the report contained in my first blog post to the Press Trust of India (Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai), The Times of India (Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai), Open Magazine, Mumbai Mirror (Their inbox was full, hence the message appeared as 'not delivered') and Youth Ki Aawaz portal. Not a single one of them replied back or acknowledged my e-mail, or got back to me for information, barring the Youth Ki Aawaz portal which also developed cold feet and refused to publish my report.

GIC Gazette Notification 2010

Kindly refer to the clause 1 (3) where it is mentioned that arrears will not be paid to those employees who have resigned. It is the same clause as in the LIC Gazette Notification dated 2010.