Helpline to clear RTI doubts, courtesy activists
Neha Shukla, TNN, Apr 10, 2010, 05.41am IST
LUCKNOW: Here comes help for those willing to tread the RTI line, but
do not know how to go about it. The full-fledged RTI helpline and
helpmail which gets rolling from Saturday is more than a promise to
increase awareness on the Act.
People can call up at 8081898081 and seek answers to their queries on
RTI. It could be anything from filing the application to finding
answers to the doubts about the use of the Act and many more similar
things regarding the right to information (RTI) Act. There is still
very little awareness on the Act though it has been there for the past
four years in Uttar Pradesh. Many may not know that if not addressed
to the Public Information Officer (PIO) of the department, RTI
application will not fetch any response. Which is why the group of RTI
activists active in the city have come together to give shape to the
phone and e-mail helpline.
"We want to help people to use the Act in the right manner", said
Urvashi Sharma, an RTI activist. The helpline will not be a toll-free
number as of now. It will be functional between 8 am to 10 pm.
Besides, it will only answer to the queries made in either Hindi or
English.
People can also mail at (aishwaryaj2010@gmail.com) to get their doubts
cleared on the Act. The activists will personally answer the queries
on a day-to-day basis.
Creating awareness on the RTI Act has always been a prime concern and
focus. The UP State Information Commission has also taken up several
initiatives to simplify the Act for people. The concise version of the
Act, a booklet popularly called 'gutka', has been introduced by the
commission to explain the nitty-gritties of the Act. It explains how
simple it is to file an RTI application.
The booklet has been published in Hindi. More so because the entire
Act is available in English and its translation in Hindi is more than
needed for UP where maximum applicants are Hindi-speaking folks.
Anyone can obtain the booklet from the office of the PIO of the
commission or that of any of the Information Commissioners (ICs). The
booklet is available free of cost.
The commission had published quite a few of such booklets in the past
like 'prashnotri' which explained the procedures of disposal of an
application etc.
--
Urvashi Sharma
Social Worker
contact - 9369613513
@i$#w@ry@!
rti helpline-8081898081
rti helpmail aishwaryaj2010@gmail.com
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