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| Prasar Bharti order on Urdu, Kashmiri, Dogri languages ignored | | Local Radio Stations fail to air awareness about RTI Act | | Et Report
Srinagar, Sept 26 : Early Times has accessed an important letter which the Director General of Prasar Bharti Broadcasting Corporation of India news has written to Wajahat Habibullah the Chairperson National Commission for Minorities few months back wherein the DG mentions that Radio Kashmir Srinagar and Jammu have been directed to mount suitable number of news based programmes on JK RTI Act 2009 in Urdu , Kashmiri and Dogri languages . The letter also mentions that the radio stations at Srinagar and Jammu have been also asked to take necessary steps to create awareness about RTI Act in J&K state. As per details available a group of RTI activists from J&K lead by Dr Raja Muzaffar Bhat had approached Wajahat Habibullah in New Delhi during May this year and had raised the issue related to lack of awareness about Right to Information Act in J&K State . The activists had requested Wajahat Habilullah to take up the matter with CEO Prasar Bharti so that radio stations in Jammu & Kashmir air programmes on J&K RTI Act 2009 which would help to create awareness about this act at grass root level . Wajahat Habibullah who also happens to be the former Chief Information Commissioner of Central Information Commission (CIC) wrote a DO letter to CEO Prasar Bharti New Delhi in May . The CEO forwarded the letter to DG (News) Archana Datta who send an official reply vide letter No: NSD/PP&D/VIP/2010/367 dated 15/7/2013 to Habibullah which reads as: " May kindly refer to you the letter dated 16th May 2013 addressed to Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Prasar Bharti enclosing a representation from RTI activists from J&K for mounting weekly programme on RTI Act in Urdu , Kashmiri and Dogri for awareness of the people of J&K I would like to inform you that , I have already directed the head of office Radio Kashmir Srinagar to mount a suitable number of news based programmes on J&K RTI Act 2009 in Urdu , Kashmiri and Dogri and take necessary steps to create an awareness among the people of the state about the act. The advisory has also been issued to them that centrally sponsored schemes should be covered widely in news bulletins and news based programmes so that eligible people can benefit from these schemes".
"Inspite of the direction from DG Prasar Bharti the Radio Kashmir Srinagar as well as Jammu have failed to air such awareness programmes. The news bulletins and Sheherben carry much news items about politics and politicians and RTI finds a no space , we hope that station directors must look into this matter and make necessary arrangement to air RTI related progranmmes in Urdu , Kashmiri and Dogri so that people living in the remotest corners of the state could be made aware about RTI Act " said Dr Raja Muzaffar Bhat senior RTI Activist and founder of J&K RTI Movement who had taken up the matter with Wajahat Habibullah and CEO Prasar Bharti in New Delhi .
Pertinent to mention that Under section 23 of J&K RTI Act 2009 the Government is under legal obligation of creating awareness among masses for using Right to Information Act (RTI Act) but till date not a single such programme has been undertaken by the Government except holding few workshops for Government officials. How can people access information under RTI when they are not aware about this law? Said Mohammad Ramzan Khan RTI Activist from Srinagar. "Instead of Government the state Information Commission (SIC) has held few such programmes and the Chief Information Commissioner G R Sufi himself visited many far flung areas of J&K and urged the people to use RTI Act" said Haqnawaz Nehru RTI Activist from Doda. |
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