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| XEn PHE Rajouri fears transparency? | | ‘1st RTI application returned to applicant, 2nd remains unanswered’ | | Avinash Azad
Early Times Report
Jammu, July 16: Apparently fearing that replying to an application filed under Right to Information Act could lead to opening of a Pandora’s box, an Executive Engineer of PHE department returned first submission to the applicant and the second application has remained unanswered even after a lapse of four months.
According to the applicant, he had filed a RTI application in the office of XEn PHE Division Rajouri seeking details of staff strength in the division under Central RTI Act 2005, in the month of February 2020. “The concerned office refused to accept the application sent through speed post on February 6, 2020, and the same was returned, even unopened”, the applicant said, adding that the office made mockery of its mandate under the RTI Act.
“The PIO as per rules, can point out deficiency as per RTI Act, but cannot refuse to accept the application”, he said, adding that since the department is facing huge shortage of staff, he wanted to know the existing staff strength in the division.
The applicant said that disappointed over PIO’s response, he filed the same application through speed post in the month of March 2020. “I sent same application through speed post on March 18, 2020, however, due to outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic the countrywide lockdown was imposed, for a period of one month all the government offices in J&K remained closed, but on April 20, 2020 J&K Government issued order asking various departments to start functioning with minimum staff strength”, the applicant said, adding that the Central Government easing lockdown restriction on June 8, 2020 put unlock-1 into force.
He said that he received a letter from the Office of XEn PHE Rajouri recently, in which the office has tried to escape its mandate on the pretext of prevailing situation due to lockdown. “It is intimated to you that the information under RTI Act 2009 (2005) asked from this office cannot be complete as the office is not functioning properly due to COVID-19 lock down period. As the standing instruction from the government that the minimum staff has to attend the office duties for maintaining social distance”, Er. Zulfkar Ali APIO, Technical Officer to XEn PHE Division Rajouri mentioned in the letter no PHER/466-67, dated 27-05/2020. |
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