Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala Government, which boasts of an advanced e-governance system, seems to be wary of passing on information to public under the Right To Information Act.
The RTI portal, which was made by the government in a hurry on the directions of the Supreme Court two months ago, is apparently marred by glitches preventing timely availability of information sought.
The dedicated portal has turned out to be a money guzzler as many who have submitted online applications seeking information from the State Government are losing their money without getting any information. Several applicants making use of the RTI Act have raised complaints in this regard.
No action is forthcoming if an application is submitted on this portal.
Even the nodal officers appointed in each department to handle the applications received don’t know their exact duties. There have been instances when such personnel realise they are the nodal officers only when they get a call from the applicants.
Those who applied online through the e-district portal earlier also did not get any information despite paying the application fees.
It has been more than four years since the Central Government and various states set up online portals that work effectively for receiving RTI applications and exchanging documents. However, the e-district portal, where applications for certificates in Kerala are submitted, had a facility to receive RTI applications two years ago, but it also had come a cropper.
Subsequently, considering a petition filed by the Legal Cell of Non-Resident Indians, the Supreme Court directed all the states to set up an online portal. The new portal was set up in haste in order to convince the court.
As per the rules, an application has to be replied to within 30 days. If a reply is not received, an appeal can be filed. However, the appeal cannot be filed on the State Government’s portal. The RTI activists are now planning to approach the Supreme Court, pointing out these issues.