Harmonising of RTI Rules and Fees all over India

**karira** · 06-01-2011, 01:59 PM

Many members on this forum have made posts/threads on the issue of:

1. Abnormally high application fees / further fees prescribed by some States / Courts
2. Different modes of payment of fees from state to state

It now seems that the Government has finally woken up to these complaints and DoPT has issues a circular to all States and Competent Authorities requesting them to consider harmonising the RTI Rules and Fees with those of the Centre.

The full circular is attached to this post.

**jetley** · 06-01-2011, 02:25 PM

Sponsorer

Thanks. If the state governments accept this recommendation in totality, will it mean that Dept. of Posts will have to accept RTI applications and appeals directed towards state govt. public authorities also?

**karira** · 06-02-2011, 08:48 AM

Originally Posted by jetley

Thanks. If the state governments accept this recommendation in totality, will it mean that Dept. of Posts will have to accept RTI applications and appeals directed towards state govt. public authorities also?

The circular is only for RTI Rules and Fees.

That decision regarding Post Office accepting RTI applications for certain central public authorities is not part of the Rules or Fees. It was a decision by the Prime Minister and followed by the Department of Posts.

**SANJOG MAHESHWARI** · 07-12-2011, 12:50 PM

Re: Harmonising of RTI Rules and Fees all over India: Pl. intimate the date from which uniform RTI Rules and Fees in all the states all over India has been made effective quoting the No. and date of the circular issued in this connection. Better display the contents of the circular. Thanks.

**karira** · 08-13-2011, 10:29 AM

As reported by PTI in zeenews.india.com on 10 August 2011:
http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation...re_725461.html

Bring uniformity in RTI fee: Centre

New Delhi: The Centre has asked all departments, state governments and judiciary to bring the Right to Information Act fee in "consonance" with the fee prescribed by it.

The move comes as several public authorities like Delhi High Court were charging Rs 50 for giving information under the transparency law as against Rs 10 prescribed by the Centre under the Right to Information (Regulation of Fee and Cost) Rules, 2005.

In a recent circular issued by the Department of Personnel and Training which is the nodal body for implementing the RTI Act in the country, it said that fee should not become a "disincentive for using the Right to Information."

"Section 27 and 28 of the Right to Information Act, 2005 empower the appropriate Governments and the Competent Authorities to make rules to prescribe, iter alia, the fees payable under the Act.

"In exercise of the powers, the Central Government, State Governments, High Courts etc have notified rules. It has been observed that the fee prescribed by different appropriate Governments/competent authorities is at great variance," the circular said.

It asked all the states and competent authorities to "review" their RTI fee rules and "prescribe fee in consonance" with the fee prescribed by the Centre and inform the DoPT with the action taken in this regard.

Recently, activist Subhash Agrawal has complained before the Central Information Commission about the hardships faced by RTI applicants because of variance in RTI fee rules and procedures.