Report on One-Day Seminar-cum-Workshop at I.T.C.
Sonar Bangla, Sheraton Hotel Towers
Kolkata –
700046 on 28.07.2006
One whole day Seminar-cum-Workshop on “Capacity
Building for Access to Information with reference to Right To
Information Act, 2005” was held at the Conference Hall named
“PALA-III” of ITC Sonar Bangla Sheraton Hotel &
Towers, Kolkata – 700046 on 28.07.2006. 51
participants besides the officials from ATI joined the Workshop and
took part in the proceedings. All the Additional District
Magistrates (General) and Nodal Officers for the UNDP assisted
Project on RTI from 18 districts were invited to join the programme in
addition to which representatives from some leading NGOs of Kolkata
and districts known to have been working in the area of Right to
Information for creation of mass awareness among the common people, as
well as some special invitees from Victoria Memorial Hall, Asiatic
Society, Indian Museum were invited to grace the occasion.
The registration for the programme started at 9.30 a.m. and after a
break for tea for about 10 minutes the Seminar-cum-Workshop started
with Welcome Address from Sri M.L. Bhattacharya, Deputy Director, ATI
for 5 minutes from 10.25 a.m. to 10.30 a.m.
After the welcome address was over a film-show of 16 minutes’
duration prepared by ATI covering the theme of Right to Information
and highlighting major provisions of the RTI Act, 2005 was screened
before the participants. The story, script and main plot
of the film were conceived by the trainee officers belonging to the
2004 batch WBCS (Exe.) cadre while they were undergoing their
Foundation Training at ATI from 1st February, 2006 to 3rd June, 2006
and all the roles were played by a group of the said trainees.
The film was unanimously and unequivocally praised by all present in
the programme specially by Sri A.K. Bhattacharya, IAS (Retd.), Chief
Information Commissioner, West Bengal during his inaugural speech.
He also appreciated the steps so far taken by ATI as the State
Implementing Agency for the UNDP assisted Project on the Capacity
Building for Access to Information and emphasized the further needs
for imparting training to various levels of functionaries including
those working in the Municipal Corporations and Municipalities and
also for taking appropriate actions for bringing out handbooks,
pamphlets and guide books both in English and Bengali for future
trainees as well as for a general action towards dissemination and
advocacy of the provisions of the Act.
The next speaker for the seminar was Sri A. R.
Bandyopadhyay, IAS (Retd.), Ex-Additional Secretary, Government of
India who spoke on the subject “Right to Information as a Primary
Tool for Good Governance”. He emphasized the need for
effecting an attitudinal change among all classes of stakeholders
liable to disseminate information for all levels of common people
braking away from the long standing culture of secrecy and control.
He stressed the need for sharing information not only for the sake of
creating an informed citizenry, one of the major objectives of the RTI
Act but also for the interest of the service providers as timely
dissemination of information, as he opined, is liable to put off
unjustified pressure and demand upon the public authorities by
building up an environment of mutual trust.
Dr. U.N. Biswas, IPS (Retd.), Ex-Additional
Director, CBI spoke on the subject “Right to Information –
Obligations of Public Servants and Rights of Public -- A
Forensic Presentation” for 45 minutes from 12.00 Noon to 12.45 p.m.
His speech was mainly replete with doubts about the successful
implementation of the provisions of the Act in a number of ways.
He was critical about the requirement indicated at the beginning of
the Act for cataloguing and indexing of all official documents held by
and under control of public authorities which conversely, he felt, to
be most important and necessary for providing information to the
information requestors readily. He expressed doubts about
how and what length of time it might require for the public
authorities to translate this necessity into reality. He also stressed
upon the importance and urgency of digitalizing and computerizing data
to be made available by the instrumentalities of the Government,
self-Government and non-Government organizations to the information
requestors. The speech by Dr. U.N. Biswas was
followed by “An overview of the Right to Information Act, 2005”
which Sri H.P. Mukhopadhyay, WBCS (Exe.) (Retd.), a regular
guest faculty of ATI very efficiently presented before the
participants covering all facets of the legislation i.e.
RTI Act, 2005. After lunch break for about a period of 45
minutes two eminent journalists viz., Sri Rajat Roy and Sri
Subhamoy Chatterjee spoke on the topics “Right to Information for
Citizens -- The Basic Impediments” and “Right to
Information and Role of Media” respectively. Sri Rajat
Roy, who works for the TV Channel, Kolkata T. V., stressed on
the need of involving common men of the locality whenever development
programmes are in progress in their areas apprising them threadbare of
the details of the schemes, money allotted, expenses actually incurred
which he felt would go a long way for implementation of the schemes to
the extent of 100% success and in alleviating the commonly generated
problems as consequences of mistrust and information gaps.
He demanded immediate abolition of the Official Secrets Act, 1923
which he criticized to be instrumental over years in segregating the
service providers from the target beneficiaries only surviving as an
iron curtain between the stake holders and common public even after
the long lapse of 58 years of Independence. He also
criticized the role of media so far not giving adequate publicity to
the objectives and efficacies as have been envisaged in the RTI Act,
2005. He lamented that media is still adhering to
the culture of catering news which are sensational in nature and
adjudged saleable to the readers of newspapers and viewers of T.V.
Channel. He highlighted the fact that common people are
yet to be properly groomed to become aware of their rights and the
ways and means to assert those effectively and he stressed the need
for ensuring special initiative to sensitize them and make them aware
of their dues as have been emphasized in the new legislation.
He cautioned that this not being done RTI Act, 2005 would meet the
same fate as we have seen so far in respect of other legislations for
Human Rights and similar welfare endeavours meant for the common
people.
Echoing the same sentiment and observation made by
Sri Rajat Kumar Roy, Sri Subhamoy Chatterjee, Senior Correspondent,
Hindusthan Times expressed his grievance against the media for not
doing enough yet to publicise the importance of the RTI Act, 2005
for the benefit of the common public. He invited attention
to the fact that all Government functionaries including the police
personnel, the media people and others live in the same social set-up
and they have to work collectively as such towards betterment of the
environment they live in having the common good will to effect change
towards a better tomorrow. He lamented the fact that
efforts are already in the offing at the highest level to bring change
in the RTI Act to keep file notings out of the access of information
requestors. He said that if this was allowed to be done
the efficacy and purpose of the enactment to a major extent would be
castigated. He further lamented that though there are a
good number of well-intentioned people around us there is a vitiated
section who form a power lobby to keep alive the culture of obtaining
everything by illegal means by way of illegal gratification and he
emphasized that RTI Act might be used as a potential weapon to counter
this culture of malpractice and bring about a change for transparency
and corruption free governance.
During the Open House Discussion Session Dr.
Ashok Sarkar of Lokakalyan Parishad a very leading NGO working in the
area of Right To Information for common people in the districts
emphasized upon the importance of pro-active disclosure as has been
insisted upon in the Act under Section 4(1) and 4(2) as the
first step towards implementation of the provisions of the Act.
He further stressed that the method and process of capacity building
for access to information should be developed in such a manner and
with such positivity in the out look so that all sorts of information
may reach grass-root level people living at the remotest corner of
Panchayat areas. He expressed his conviction that by
giving due importance to pro-active disclosure, publication of
citizens’ charter and establishment of help line positive changes
can be effected in the targeted direction. He stated that
there should be some acceleration in the working and roles of media
for imparting information about the rights of people within the
shortest possible time.
The ADM (General), Bankura also wanted the media to
be pro-active and positive in disclosure of appropriate and reality
based information instead of complicating situation by catering
camouflaged news, part of which on several occasions have proved to be
half-truth. He observed that if the newspapers and the
electronic media would take care to provide précise and correct
information about the development schemes during the crisis situations
many problems might be solved readily and the half informed and even
ill-informed people would not have to rush to Administration to
strengthen the ongoing crisis and slow down the process of
implementation and crisis management activities. He
requested NGOs and media to play their role to help
administration by criticizing service providers particularly the
Government and Panchayat functionaries in the positive and
constructive manner and guiding people to come forward to
help administration with appropriate information.
Reacting on this Sri Rajat Roy admitted that there
was truth in what was stated by the ADM (General) and in tune with his
statements he criticized the media for working mostly with commercial
intents, giving more emphasis to boost up the sale of their commodity
than catering reality based news.
The District Magistrate, Hooghly raised the
following questions :--
-
How one information requestor sending his application for information through electronic means i.e. by e-mail would be required to pay the requisite fee of Rs. 10/- which he has to pay by way of Court Fee Stamp as per provision laid down in the RTI Rules of the State?
-
Whether information requested to be supplied from several sources not covered in one place would have to be collected, compiled and supplied thereafter?
-
Whether the SPIO would be held responsible for providing information, which is not available within his official authority?
-
Whether the money collected from the information requestors could be retained with SPIO or the establishment he belongs to?
-
Whether money would have to be refunded to the information requestors if the information requested for cannot be provided?
-
If the money collected has to be deposited in the Government Account and what would be the Head of Account under which the money would have to be deposited?
-
Whether SPIOs would have to be designated at the Gram Panchayat (GP) levels and whether the District Magistrate had anything to do to designate officers?
-
He also wanted to know how fund provisions could be met for the preliminary and immediate expenditure for providing information when requested and whether the Government was considering about providing support in terms of money and staff for the substantial workload that the SPIOs, SAPIOs and the Appellate Authority would have to deal with.
Replies to the queries of the District Magistrate,
Hooghly were provided by the Nodal Officer, SIA except the query no.
1 for which it was decided that reference would be made to the
Government. Also it was decided that the issue relating to the
fund requirement and staff support would also be referred to the
Government for active consideration.
Sri Dipak Sanyal, IAS (Retd.), who attended the programme as a special invitee spoke on the occasion and stated that though the legislation in the area of Right to Information was a relatively new one in our country, in the global perspective initiative for providing scope and right for access to information to citizens had a long tradition and history, common people showing exemplary interest and activity in making use of their rights in relatively small and newly independent countries all over the world. He expressed hope that RTI Act, 2005 would also be successfully implemented in our country, but cautioned that collective efforts, common good-will and serious approach towards addressing the preliminary impediments that may come in the way would how to be ensured at all levels, particularly at the levels of the multi-stake holders and service providers.
The programme ended with a Vote-of-Thanks by Dr. Arabinda Ghosh, Deputy Director, ATI.
The Seminar-cum-Workshop was covered by Kolkata Door Darshan and AIR, Kolkata.
Sd/- Gautam Sengupta
[ GAUTAM SENGUPTA ]
DEPUTY DIRECTOR, ATI & NODAL OFFICER,
UNDP ASSISTED PROJECT