Nagaland recorded highest nos of RTI applications

Nagaland recorded highest nos of RTI applications

Nagaland recorded highest nos of RTI applications

Our Correspondent
Kohima | August 18


Among the small states category, Nagaland recorded the highest number of RTI applications received from 2006-07 to 2016-17 at 24, 896.


This was stated in the Annual Administrative Report (2018-2019) of the State’s Department of Personnel & Administrative Reforms (DP&AR) tabled in the recently concluded state assembly session.


The Nagaland Information Commission has analysed the RTI applications received by the various public authorities in the state for the first time for the period 2015-16 and 2016-17, which was perhaps the first Information Commission in the country to have undertaken such analysis.


The report stated that the Commission had continued with the analysis of the RTI request or applications received by the various public authorities in the state for the period 2017-18.


It showed that there has been decline in the number of RTI applications or requests received by the various public authorities in the state during the last three years from 2015-16 to 2017-18. 


“This decline can be safely attributed due to increase in the level of transparency in the state as per the above analysis of proactive disclosures carried out by the Commission,” it noted.


Like in the previous years, the report stated that the most sought-after information during 2017-18 were financial matters such as funds released, sanction orders, actual payee receipts, utilization certificates etc followed by schemes related queries.


“With the high rate of unemployment in the state, queries like appointment orders, incumbency lists, retirement lists, examination results, verification of mark sheets, admit cards, degree & diploma certificates etc, were sought. Besides, verification of documents such as driving licences and arms licences were also sought mostly in the district level,” the report added.

 

Audit of proactive disclosures
The report stated that with the successful completion of the audit of the proactive disclosure of all the public authorities in the state for the periods, 2015-16 and 2016-17, the Commission had continued with the audit of the proactive disclosures of the state public authorities for the period 2017-18.


The quick and quantitative analysis was carried out by Commission using the ‘Audit of proactive disclosures under RTI Act, 2005- A Toolkit” developed by the Centre for Good Governance, Hyderabad "revealed that there has been an increase in the level of transparency among the Public Authorities in the state during the last three years."