J&K Bank, KU, JU added to public authorities’ list
Irfan Tramboo
Srinagar, Feb 11: The Nodal Officers (NOs) under the recently launched J&K RTI portal are not transferring RTI applications within the mandated five-day period, leading to delays in furnishing information.
According to applicants, the Nodal Officers-responsible for transferring applications to the relevant Public Information Officers (PIOs) of various departments-are taking longer than five days, often extending the process to weeks.
“Ideally, the Nodal Officers should transfer applications within five days to the concerned PIOs. However, that is not happening at present, resulting in delays in providing the requested information,” said an applicant who has submitted multiple RTIs through the portal.
The delays, the applicants said, can also contribute to an unnecessary increase in first appeals, as applicants would be compelled to file appeals when information is not provided within the stipulated time.
As per the Act, the reply to the applicant has to be furnished within 30 days after the submission of the application, however, when the delay is witnessed on the lower level, the PIOs will not get the required time to furnish the reply.
“When applicants don’t receive a timely response, they are forced to file appeals, unnecessarily increasing the workload-an issue that could easily be avoided by ensuring prompt transfer of applications.”
To reduce the potential burden of first appeals, applicants emphasize that NOs should transfer applications within five days, ensuring that PIOs have sufficient time to provide the requested information.
Additionally, applicants have raised concerns about a lack of awareness among PIOs regarding the portal and its functioning.
“At times, we have to call the PIOs about the application; some are not even aware of the portal or how it operates,” said Syed Adil, an RTI applicant.
He emphasized the need for greater awareness to ensure the effective functioning of the online portal and proper implementation of the RTI Act, which has been the prime focus of the Government.
Notably, applicants who had previously flagged several technical issues with the portal report that many of these have been resolved, though a few still persist.
Currently, applicants are facing payment-related issues with certain departments, preventing them from completing their requests. “This issue affects only a few departments and needs to be rectified,” one applicant said.
Meanwhile, after an initial delay, the authorities have finally added J&K Bank and other public authorities to the portal-a demand that had been raised by citizens seeking prompt action. JKBOPEE, however, remains missing from the portal.
With 277 public authorities on board, apart from J&K Bank, University of Kashmir, University of Jammu, Cluster University Srinagar, Jammu, Mata Vaishno Devi University, Islamic University of Science and Technology, Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University are now on-board on the J&K RTI portal.
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