India's 'revolutionary' RTI Act fails to reach the poor
NEW DELHI: A law empowering Indians to seek information from government to promote accountability and transparency has brought change to urban India, but has largely left out the country's rural poor, social activists say.
The Right to Information (RTI) Act - similar to the Freedom of Information Act in the United States - was enacted almost five years ago and is aimed at providing a practical way for all citizens to access information held by public authorities.
Social activists, who long campaigned for the RTI as a way of limiting corruption and nepotism rife in many government departments, say the act has had a tremendous impact in creating transparency and helping people hold authorities to account, but add that more needs to be done.
India is ranked 84th or near the middle of 180 countries in the Transparency International Corruption Perception Index, based on an integrity rating of 3.2-3.6 (0 being the most corrupt and 10 the le ast), indicating that experts perceive the country to be highly corrupt.
"Since the RTI came into being, it has really helped in redressing grievances as well as bringing to book those found to be involved in corrupt practices," said the Healthcare Foundation's Ajay Goel, who helps people to file applications for information as part of the civil society group's RTI awareness campaign.
"It has the potential to revolutionise the socio-economic conditions of all Indians, provided that people understand the importance of the act and that the responsible agencies adhere to providing the information requested."
TAX RETURNS, BLOCKED DRAINS
Social activists estimate that hundreds of people every day are filing applications to the Central Information Commission - the regulatory body charged with helping those seeking answers.
Applications are vast and varied - from people wanting to know why the drains near their homes have not been cleared or roads not repaired to why their income tax refund has not materialised or why their water rates have been hiked.
You can ask pretty much anything as long as it is not related to national security - salaries of politicians, expenses of ministers re-doing their offices or even why the local magistrate has not turned up for work for the last month.
Media reports abound on how successful the RTI has been with some even called it "the fifth pillar" of democracy.
Recently, an RTI applicant was awarded Rs 100,000 ($2,250) by the national railways after he filed an application to the CIC saying he had not received his marks after taking an examination for a job with Indian railways.
Another applicant managed to find his mobile phone using the RTI, while four publishers sought information on why government did not put out a tender calling for bids to supply school books.
"Today, when I face any problem, I feel like I have power in my hand to do something about it and gain what is rightfully mine - information is my right," said one activist.
The procedure is simple: write a letter with your contact details, your grievance and clearly state your questions, submit your application online, in person or by mail.
The fee for the application varies from state to state, but in the capital, New Delhi, it costs Rs 10. Those living below the poverty line are exempt from payment.
The CIC then decides whether you deserve a reply and if so, whether to award compensation and penalise the public officer concerned.
But activists also say only 10 per cent of applicants receive a satisfactory reply and there should equally be scrutiny of the CIC's efforts to get answers.
POOR UNAWARE
India's civil society organisations and the media have been instrumental in spreading awareness of the act. Local newspapers and television news stations themselves have filed a large percentage of applic ations, seeking information related to news reports and investigations they are conducting.
Social activists - most of whom are volunteers fed up with the obscure bureaucracy and unaccountability in public offices - help Indians file applications, hold workshops and distribute leaflets.
But still, knowledge of the law is poor. According to a June 2009 study by PriceWaterhouseCoopers, only 13 per cent of the rural population and 33 per cent of the urban population were aware of the RTI.
Most importantly, campaigners say, the majority of India's poor - the people most vulnerable to corrupt practices - are the ones who know the least about their rights under the law.
According to the India Corruption Study 2008 by Transparency International India, less than 1 per cent of those living below the poverty line in Bihar - one of India's most corrupt and underdeveloped states - knew about the RTI.
"In our study we found that people living below the poverty line have to pay over Rs 9 billion annually as bribes in order to avail basic social services like subsidised food schemes and employment opportunities as well as water, health, electricity, housing and forestry," said Anupama Jha, executive director of Transparency International India.
"If people knew about the RTI," added Jha, "they could find out why they had to pay for food which should be free and why they weren't getting their entitlements and who was stealing their rights."
The Right to Information (RTI) Act - similar to the Freedom of Information Act in the United States - was enacted almost five years ago and is aimed at providing a practical way for all citizens to access information held by public authorities.
Social activists, who long campaigned for the RTI as a way of limiting corruption and nepotism rife in many government departments, say the act has had a tremendous impact in creating transparency and helping people hold authorities to account, but add that more needs to be done.
India is ranked 84th or near the middle of 180 countries in the Transparency International Corruption Perception Index, based on an integrity rating of 3.2-3.6 (0 being the most corrupt and 10 the le ast), indicating that experts perceive the country to be highly corrupt.
"Since the RTI came into being, it has really helped in redressing grievances as well as bringing to book those found to be involved in corrupt practices," said the Healthcare Foundation's Ajay Goel, who helps people to file applications for information as part of the civil society group's RTI awareness campaign.
"It has the potential to revolutionise the socio-economic conditions of all Indians, provided that people understand the importance of the act and that the responsible agencies adhere to providing the information requested."
TAX RETURNS, BLOCKED DRAINS
Social activists estimate that hundreds of people every day are filing applications to the Central Information Commission - the regulatory body charged with helping those seeking answers.
Applications are vast and varied - from people wanting to know why the drains near their homes have not been cleared or roads not repaired to why their income tax refund has not materialised or why their water rates have been hiked.
You can ask pretty much anything as long as it is not related to national security - salaries of politicians, expenses of ministers re-doing their offices or even why the local magistrate has not turned up for work for the last month.
Media reports abound on how successful the RTI has been with some even called it "the fifth pillar" of democracy.
Recently, an RTI applicant was awarded Rs 100,000 ($2,250) by the national railways after he filed an application to the CIC saying he had not received his marks after taking an examination for a job with Indian railways.
Another applicant managed to find his mobile phone using the RTI, while four publishers sought information on why government did not put out a tender calling for bids to supply school books.
"Today, when I face any problem, I feel like I have power in my hand to do something about it and gain what is rightfully mine - information is my right," said one activist.
The procedure is simple: write a letter with your contact details, your grievance and clearly state your questions, submit your application online, in person or by mail.
The fee for the application varies from state to state, but in the capital, New Delhi, it costs Rs 10. Those living below the poverty line are exempt from payment.
The CIC then decides whether you deserve a reply and if so, whether to award compensation and penalise the public officer concerned.
But activists also say only 10 per cent of applicants receive a satisfactory reply and there should equally be scrutiny of the CIC's efforts to get answers.
POOR UNAWARE
India's civil society organisations and the media have been instrumental in spreading awareness of the act. Local newspapers and television news stations themselves have filed a large percentage of applic ations, seeking information related to news reports and investigations they are conducting.
Social activists - most of whom are volunteers fed up with the obscure bureaucracy and unaccountability in public offices - help Indians file applications, hold workshops and distribute leaflets.
But still, knowledge of the law is poor. According to a June 2009 study by PriceWaterhouseCoop
Most importantly, campaigners say, the majority of India's poor - the people most vulnerable to corrupt practices - are the ones who know the least about their rights under the law.
According to the India Corruption Study 2008 by Transparency International India, less than 1 per cent of those living below the poverty line in Bihar - one of India's most corrupt and underdeveloped states - knew about the RTI.
"In our study we found that people living below the poverty line have to pay over Rs 9 billion annually as bribes in order to avail basic social services like subsidised food schemes and employment opportunities as well as water, health, electricity, housing and forestry," said Anupama Jha, executive director of Transparency International India.
"If people knew about the RTI," added Jha, "they could find out why they had to pay for food which should be free and why they weren't getting their entitlements and who was stealing their rights."
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