Act An applicant wants some information under the RTI Act from the Doodhpathri Development Authority (DDA) Kashmir and the information is not furnished for months together as the DDA take the alibi of ”shortage of manpower” and the information asked for being not in a compact form and being ”scattered” . As if it was any less to mock and trivialise the provisions of the RTI Act , the applicant was told to personally visit the office to ”inspect ” the records. Again, as if it was any less of taking the things quite casually, the letter informing the applicant to visit the office was sent by ordinary mail which he reportedly received after an inordinate delay. Such a working of the Government Department is totally unacceptable and thinking that under the cover of shortage of the staff , information could be afforded not to be made available or at best decided about the applicant making searches himself in the office of relevant records and papers to collate information from the scattered papers reflects how still the sensitivities and the importance about the RTI Act and about non optional nature of furnishing the requisite information are not known to many departments and that is quite unfortunate. It is left to the concerned higher authorities to make discreet inquiries in the matter and tone up the working of the department and see how the concerned department could afford to take such unwarranted liberties with the issue. The applicant must get the requisite information in any case as the applicant is within his right to say, ”your problem is in no way any solution or a substitute to my getting the information.”
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