Frequently Asked Questions and Answers

Yes. Aspects of the file which are pending decisions also need to be disclosed unless exempted under Section 8 or 9.

No, the RTI Act makes it clear that the PIO has the power to transfer an application or parts of it, if this relates to information held by another public authority or relates more closely to the activities of any other public authority [Section 6(3)]. The PIO is not responsible for collecting information from other public authorities especially if it is likely to take more than 30 days to secure such information, it is better to transfer the application to the concerned PIO and inform the applicant about the transfer in writing immediately Section 6 (3). This amounts to action taken in good faith and will not attract any penalty to the PIO.

No. The PIO will not invite any penalty in such cases. The 30-day clock stops ticking from the date of dispatching the intimation order issued by the PIO and restarts on the date on which the applicant pays the additional fee. For example, if the PIO dispatches the intimation later on the 5th-day from, the date of receipt for the complete application only 5 days would have elapsed from the 30-day limit. The clock will restart on the date on which the applicant pays the additional fees. The PIO will have to provide the information within 25 days from the date of payment of additional fees. If the applicant chooses to seek a review of the additional fee from the FAA or the SIC the period taken for giving a decision on this matter will not be included in the 30-day limit.

Question: Is the PIO duty-bound to provide information within 30 days even in such cases?

Answer: No. The PIO does not have a duty to provide information to the applicant in such cases. The RI Act states very clearly that the PIO will provide access to information only upon payment of additional fee as may be determined [Sec. 7(1)] by him/her. However, if the PIO does not receive a response to his/her intimation letter from the applicant then the PIO need not take any action.. This action of the PIO will not amount to unreasonable denial of information and will therefore not invite any penalty. It is advisable for the Government to specify the time period limit for such cases in the rues or in the guidelines.

This is a grey area and decision in regard to this is pending before the High Court of Kerala. However, Government has issued a clarification that if the services for providing certificate/copies of department like Revenue, Registration, Survey, etc., are fixed, the statutory fee for obtaining such certificates/ services cannot be circumvented by RTI. However the RTI applicant is at liberty to examine the file, if such file is not of a confidential nature by due process.

No. There is nothing in the RTI Act that states that information disclosed proactively should not be provided to a citizen on request. Section 4(4) requires that all materials disseminated under this Act should be available with the PIO and as far as possible in electronic format. The purpose behind this requirement is that the citizen need not wait for 30 days to get access to information that is already being proactively disseminated. If available in a printed format the PIO may make copies of the same or provide photocopies of the relevant pages to the citizen. If such information is available only in electronic format, the same may be provided on floppies, diskettes, CDs, or in the form of printouts upon payment of fees at rates prescribed by the Government.

The RTI Act is meant for giving citizens easy access to information held by public authorities. There is nothing in this law to stop the APIO from giving information under his/her possession to the information requestor. As PIO is the statutorily designated officer responsible for providing information under the Act, it would be better for the APIO to forward the information under intimation to the PIO.

PSUs fall within the category of public authorities. But if an applicant seeks information about trade secrets or Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) the disclosure of which will affect the competitive position of that PSU, such information may not be given unless there is a larger public interest involved. Even if the law constituting the PSU does not allow disclosure of certain categories of information, the RTI Act, 2005 overrides any such law in existence. Hence the designated PIO for the organization under question has to provide the information asked under RTI Act.

Yes. Every public authority should assess the information needs of people who contact it from time to time and make available information to all requestors.

The Government should come out with detailed guidelines regarding the protection available for copyrighted materials and intellectual property rights held by public authorities. If disclosure of building plans and designs affect the economic or security interests of the State in a prejudicial manner then such information falls under Section 8(1)(a). But if the PIO is able to justify before the concerned appellate authority that s/he had provided reasons for denying access to such plans, no penalty will be imposed. The appellate authority is appointed precisely to give quasi-judicial decisions on the finer points of the law. Therefore, if the PIO has taken action in good faith the appellate authority may not impose a penalty even if it decides in favour of disclosing such plans and designs.

No. Proactive disclosure of information could be made possible through various print and electronic means. It may be disseminated in one or a series of documents in print. They could all be uploaded on the website of the concerned department. Certain categories of information such as the name and designation of the officers concerned in each office, broad norms of service etc., may be put up on notice boards. Information regarding beneficiaries of various development schemes, concessions and permits may be published from time to time on the website.

Updating of information is very important under Section 4 of the RTI Act. This is a statutory requirement. The State Government will have to come out with general instructions for time-bound updating of all categories of information. Every public authority may ,in turn, issue detailed instructions for updating information that is specific to its functions. For example, information on subsidy schemes (see Sec.4(xii)) needs to be published and updated regularly if it is to be useful in terms of enabling the public to verify whether they are receiving proper subsidies and ensure that corruption is minimized.

The information shall ordinarily be given in the form in which is sought (in the form under section 2(j)). However, the information can be given in another form if,

i.it would otherwise disproportionately divert the resources of the public authority or

ii.would be detrimental to the safety or

iii.preservation of records in question

Yes, PIOs shall be designated in all offices/administrative units.However at the sub-divisional level or sub-district level, the public authority can designate an APIO for receiving application / appeal for forwarding to the PIO concerned.

Question: Periodic weeding of files results in the destruction of many documents which are not important enough to maintain for as long as 20 years or more. So it will not be possible to give such information after they have been destroyed. Will the PIO be penalized for this?

Answer: If a record has been destroyed legally,the question of penalization does not arise. The PIO cannot create a record in order to meet a request. Hence the information cannot be given if it has been legally destroyed.

No, the APIO is not an assistant to the PIO. An APIO may be appointed at the sub-district or sub-divisional level where a public authority may not have an office or administrative unit designated a PIO. He is expected to receive applications and appeals and forward the same to the PIO concerned.

No. The PIO is required to accept applications made to him/her only. The APIO is required to accept applications addressed to the PIOs of PA for which he/she is designated as APIO.