UNIVERSITY OF PETROLEUM & ENERGY STUDIES

School of Law
Dehradun
B.B.A LLB. (HONS.)
SEMESTER 7
ACAMEDIC YEAR:2022-2023
SESSION: AUG-DEC ,2022

RESEARCH PAPER
ON
Improving Transparency and Accountability in Government
Through Effective Implementation of RTI Act

SUBMITTED TO: - SUBMITTED BY: -

Miss. LATIKA CHOUDHARY SRISHTI BAJAJ, ROLLNO:
R760219084
Sap Id: - 500076186
SHRUTI GARG, ROLL NO.
R760219184
BBA LLB Corporate Law Batch

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction…………………………………………………………………3-4
Right to Information and the connection between Indian Constitution…4-6
Objective of Right to Information Act 2005……………………………….6-7
Right to information and obligation of public authorities………………. 7-9
Implementation of Right to Information in Letter and Spirit…………10-13
Conclusion…………………………………………………………………….13
Bibliography…………………………………………………………………..14

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 INTRODUCTION

Every person has the fundamental and inherent right to acquire information. In a country
that adheres to democratic values, every citizen has the right to freedom of expression
and opinion. This right includes the ability to seek, receive, and transmit information and
ideas to and from public authorities. When citizens in a civilized society have access to
relevant and applicable information, they are better able to lead dignified lives.
Moreover, there is a direct relationship between efficient governance and the right to
obtain information. Good governance is characterized by three characteristics:
transparency, accountability, and responsiveness. As a direct result, the citizen's right to
information is increasingly recognized as an essential mechanism for promoting
openness, transparency, and accountability in the administration of government
activities. The only component of a representative government system is the general
populace. In order to design a workable system of good governance in the administrative
process, it is crucial that they have a full awareness of the inner workings of all
government activities.
The Centrally Sponsored Scheme “Improving Transparency and Accountability in
Government through Effective Implementation of the Right to Information Act” was
launched in August 2010. The Goal of the Scheme was to contribute towards more
accountable and transparent government. The Purpose of the Scheme was effective
implementation of the RTI Act. The scheme aimed to achieve the following Outputs:

RTI requests are filed by public with ease. The components designed to achieve this
were:
Awareness Generation through Mass media campaign; organization of workshops,
Publication of Guide books etc and innovative awareness generation programmes
Simplification of processes for filing of RTI Requests and Appeals to central
Government Authorities which included setting up of a call center and portal for filing of
RTI requests in GOI offices.
Setting up of an institutional mechanism for collaborative working with CSOs and
Media and included consultation meetings of the National RTI Committee, RTI
Fellowships, etc.

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Improvement in quality and speed of disposal of RTI requests and appeals. The
components designed to achieve this were:
Capacity building of PIOs and AAs through training of CPIOs, SPIOs and AAs, online
certificate course on RTI, Knowledge management, etc.
Streamlined Processes for receipt, disposal and Monitoring of RTI Requests/Appeals by
setting up of RTI Cells in Central Public Authorities.
Improved Record Management.
Effective Information Commissions to ensure compliance with the provisions of the Act
through capacity building of Central/State Information Commissioners. The importance
of the right to information is growing in India. Human security, shelter, food, the
environment, and employment prospects are inextricably intertwined with the right to
information. As long as there is a lack of understanding surrounding this issue, people
will never be able to live a good life and will continue to be a marginalized group in
society. It is a formidable instrument for safeguarding the fundamental rights of people
worldwide.
An environment conducive to bribes and sexual harassment. Despite being the largest
democracy in the world, India is now unable to gain the trust of its normal inhabitants.
Everyone who pays taxes should have an equal right to see how their money is being
spent. Moreover, in a democratic nation, a citizen can only be considered an asset if he
or she develops the ability to gain access to any type of information and to use that
information effectively after gaining access. It is impossible to imagine a viable
democratic government in the absence of intellectual freedom. Today, information is the
most valuable asset for any government. Transparency and effectiveness within the
governance system are essential for achieving the purpose of good governance.
The Freedom of Information Act, which was enacted by the Indian parliament in 2002,
was intended to promote administrative transparency and accountability. The Freedom
of Information Act of 2002 was abolished, and both chambers of parliament approved
the Right to Information Bill of 2004 (RTI) in May of 2005. These occurrences were
anticipated by the National Common Minimum Programme. After being informed of its
passing, the "Right to Information Act" was published in the Gazette of India on June
21, 2005. This new law gives the people of India the ability to request any information
available from a public body, and it also increases the accountability and responsibility
of the government and its employees.

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 RIGHT TO INFORMATION AND THE CONNECTION
BETWEEN INDIAN CONSTITUTION
The "Right to Information" is one of the most fundamental human rights, as stated in Article
19(1)(a)1 of the Indian Constitution. Article 212 addresses citizens' rights to their own lives.
The court acknowledged, in accordance with the 1950 Indian Constitution, that access to
information from government agencies is fundamental to democracy. However, the right to
information does not imply that the dissemination of said information is unrestricted in any
way. Similar to all other fundamental rights, the right to information is subject to a few
reasonable restrictions.
The Right to Information Act will not apply to private entities because our Constitution states
that whenever funds are to be transferred to a government body, the general public has the
right to request information from the government or public body. The Right to Information
Act will not, however, apply to private organizations.
Once the Supreme Court stated :
The citizens of this nation have a legal right to be informed by the public servants who serve
them of every public act and anything else carried out in a manner that is visible to the
general public. They have the right to be informed of the particulars of each and every public
transaction, as well as everything the transaction entails. The right to know, which is derived
from the concept of free speech, is a factor that should cause scepticism when secrecy is
claimed for transactions that cannot, in any case, affect public safety. Even though the right to
know is not absolute, it is a reason to be cautious. To conceal something from view, it is not
in the public's best interest to conduct business as usual.
Extremely infrequently is such privacy legitimately desired. Typically, it is desired for the
purposes of parties and politics, or for the personal gratification of bureaucratic routine. It is
the duty of officials to explain and defend their actions, and this duty is the primary defense

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Article 19(1) All citizens shall have the right
(a) to freedom of speech and expression;
(b) to assemble peaceably and without arms;
(c) to form associations or unions;
(d) to move freely throughout the territory of India;
(e) to reside and settle in any part of the territory of India; and
(f)omitted
(g) to practise any profession, or to carry on any occupation, trade or business

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Article 21 Protection of life and personal liberty No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty
except according to procedure established by law

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against oppression and corruption.
• In the 1973 case Bennette Coleman v. Union of India3, our Supreme Court ruled that the
freedom of speech and expression guaranteed by Article 19(1) includes the right to access
information (a).
• In the 1975 case State of UP v. Raj Narain4, Justice Mathew stated, "It is not in the public's
best interest to shroud common routine business in a cloak of secrecy." The primary
safeguard against oppression and corruption is the obligation of public officials to explain
and defend their actions.
• In the 1995 case Secretary, Ministry of I & B, Government of India v. Cricket Association
of Bengal5, the Supreme Court of India ruled that the right to transmit and receive
information through electronic media was protected by the First Amendment.
• In the 1982 case S.P. Gupta v. Union of India6, the right of the people to be informed about
every public act and the particulars of every public transaction conducted by public officials
was established.
• In the 2004 case People's Union for Civil Liberties v. Union of India7, the right to access
information was elevated to the status of a fundamental human right. This right is required for
transparent and accountable government. Additionally, the importance of participatory
governance was emphasised.

OBJECTIVE OF RIGHT TO INFORMATION ACT, 2005

The primary objectives of the Right to Information Act are to empower citizens, to
increase openness, transparency, and accountability in government operations, to combat
corruption, and to ensure that our democracy meaningfully serves the interests of its
citizens. A citizen who is well-informed is better equipped to maintain the necessary
vigilance over the instruments of government and to increase government accountability
to the people it governs. Despite the fact that this should go without saying, it bears
repeating. The Act represents a significant step toward the goal of keeping citizens
informed about government operations.

It is widely acknowledged that information plays a crucial role in contemporary society.

3
973 AIR 106, 1973 SCR (2) 757
4
1975 AIR 865, 1975 SCR (3) 333
5
1995 AIR 1236, 1995 SCC (2) 161
6
AIR 1982 SC 149, 1981 Supp (1) SCC 87, 1982 2 SCR 365
7
AIR 1997 SC 568, JT 1997 (1) SC 288, 1996 (9) SCALE 318, (1997) 1 SCC 301, 1996 Supp 10 SCR 321,
1997 (1) UJ 187 SC

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 In fact, a well-known proverb states, "We all know that a single piece of information can
alter a person's life." In accordance with the Right to Information Act of 2005, a person is
permitted to request information from a public authority if they are permitted to do so by
law. The public entity is required to make the provision available unless it falls under
Section 8 of the Act.

RIGHT TO INFORMATION AND OBLIGATIONS OF PUBLIC

AUTHORITIES

Section 38 of the RTI Act of 2005 states that everyone in India has the right to information, so
long as they comply with the other terms of the act.

Section 4 of the RTI Act of 2005 requires every public authority to comply with the
following: Maintain all its records properly catalogued and indexed in a manner and format
that facilitates the right to information under this Act, and ensure that all records that are
suitable to be computerised are, within a reasonable time and subject to the availability of
resources, computerised and linked through a network throughout the country on different
systems so that access to such records is facilitated. Access to such records shall be provided
in accordance with 552(b).

Within one hundred twenty days of the adoption of this law, publish the following: I The
particulars of its organisation, functions, and duties; (ii) The powers and duties of its officers
and employees; (iii) The procedure followed in the decision-making process, including
channels of supervision and accountability; (iv) The standards it has established for the
performance of its duties; (v) The rules, regulations, instructions, manuals, and records held
by it, under its control, or used by it.

The monthly remuneration that each of its executives and staff receives, as well as the
method of compensation outlined in the organization's governing regulations; (xi) The budget
that has been allocated to each of its agencies, including specifics regarding all plans,

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Section 3 Right to information.—Subject to the provisions of this Act, all citizens shall have the right to
information.

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proposed expenditures, and reports on disbursements; (xii) The manner in which the subsidy
will be administered.

programmes, including monies allocated and details on people who will benefit from such
programmes; (xiii) Details on those who will get concessions, licences, or authorizations
from it; (xvi) The names, designations, and other particulars of Public Information Officers;
(xvii) Such other information as may be prescribed, and update these publications annually
afterward.

a) Publish all relevant information when drafting significant policies or announcing

judgments that will affect the public.

b) Provide affected parties with justifications for administrative or quasi-judicial

decisions.

c) In accordance with the mandates of clause (b) of subsection (1), every public
authority is required to make a concerted effort to provide as much information as
possible suo moto to the public at regular intervals via a variety of means of
communication, including the internet, so that the public is forced to use this Act as
little as possible to obtain information.

d) To satisfy the requirements of paragraph one of this section, every piece of

information must be disseminated in a way that makes it widely accessible to the
public.

e) The material should be easily accessible; if possible, in electronic format with the
Central or State Public Information Officer. All resources must be disseminated with
a focus on cost-effectiveness, local language, and the most efficient mode of
communication in each region. Depending on the conditions, either at no cost or for a
fee equal to the cost of the medium or the print cost price that may be stipulated.

SOME OF THE KEY FACTORS ARE

 Participation- Participation of both men and women is the cornerstone of good

governance. Representative democracy does not mean the rule of chosen few; it must
take into interest of all sections specially the most vulnerable sections in the society.
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 The Right to information acts gives people a chance to participate not just one in five
years, but every day and question any decisions. The right to Information act gives an
opportunity to the common men to participate in governance and reduce the
imbalance in power relationship, provides a tool to oppose injustice and allows
collective spirit to make democracy work for everyone. Right to information act also
strengthen grassroots democracy and ensures peoples participation in local
governance and development activities.
 Accessibility- Right to Information makes it possible to easy access of information
from government departments, documents, records, services, finances and policies to
all sectors of community. The Right to Information act by providing easy access of
information reduces the traditional long gape between citizens and administration and
thus helps in nation building process. The right to know and easy access of
government information helps the people to understand the limitations of government
at different levels. The availability of information also helps to foster in development
process and it is a symptom of true and mature democracy.
 Transparency- Transparency is the milestone of good governance. Transparency
means that decisions taken and their enforcement are done in a manner that follows
rules and regulations. It also means that information is freely available and directly
accessible to those who will be affected by such decisions and their enforcement.
Transparency and accountability is possible only when the public have access to
information. The enactment of Right to Information act 2005, people are now able to
seek information from any government department with a definite time frame. The
Right to Information act is intended to promote accountability and transparency in
government by making the process of government decision making more open.
Though some departments of the Union government are exempted from this act but
the information can be sought if it is concerned with violation of human rights. Even
the information from the private authority can be sought only through the controlling
authority and controlling authority will send the notice to the institution concerned
under section 11 of the act. In addition to this, the citizens are taxpayers, so they have
every right to ask the government.
 We can also say that after the RTI Act came the provisions in it have also give some
rules and regulations that which information should be disclose and which should not
under Section 8 and 9 and Section 24 also provide which organizations should be

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 exempted .
So we can say that RTI is definitely a helping hand of Government and it helps to make
Government more Transparent and Accountable under some rules and regulations.

Implementation of Right to Information in Letter and Spirit

Because citizens cannot be expected to form opinions or express themselves without

information, Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution implies the "Right to Information" as
defined by the RTI Act of 2005. This is the fundamental right to speech and expression
freely. The RTI Act is a significant move toward strengthening and reinforcing
democracy in and of itself. In a democracy, the people must be paramount, and they
must have the right to know how all central and state institutions operate so that they can
oversee their operations. The RTI Act is a significant step toward bolstering and
strengthening democracy.

The government is a big repository of vital and helpful information. This information is
essentially a national resource that belongs to the country's citizens, but it is held and
managed by a variety of administrative state bodies known as public authorities.

The RTI Act offers citizens the legal right to request information held by public bodies
and outlines the procedure for them to do so in order to comply with the law's
requirements.

The public now has more power as a result of RTI's successful enforcement of
accountability measures in government. As a result of its greater transparency, the
degree of arbitrariness in official activity has been appropriately reduced.

There are unquestionably a significant number of hurdles that must be removed before
the RTI system can be implemented properly. These have been repeatedly listed by
various experts in various RTI forums, and they include poor record keeping and records
management in the government, work overload in public-dealing departments and
offices, lack of infrastructure and manpower resources in field offices, administrative
apathy and non-cooperation, patronising attitude of public functionaries, drive for
control through hoarding of information by bureaucracy, and bureaucracy's fear of loss
of control.

However, solutions to such problems, including corrections in systems and procedures,

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the provision of financial outlays to augment resources, attitude training for
administrators, and a sufficient emphasis on digitization as a way forward, are either not
forthcoming or have not yet produced tangible results.

Regarding issues of access to public information, the RTI Act has had the most
significant effect of transferring authority from public officials to actual citizens. This
has led to a larger sense of entitlement among certain groups of the general public,
which has resulted in their engaging in confrontational behaviour when addressing
public authorities. In addition, this has led to a certain degree of defensiveness on the
side of the public officials who are being addressed, resulting in a lack of genuine
collaboration on their part in the revelation of information that is being sought. Frequent
antagonistic perspectives are characterised by reciprocal antagonism and dysfunctional
behaviour that detract from the underlying issue of openness in government and become
entangled in frivolous requests on the one hand and determined stonewalling on the
other.

In the interim, two developments have become abundantly clear: 1) The continual
increase in the use of RTI over the years is evidence of its utility and value, and 2) the
steady expansion of case law on the subject has decreased grey areas and established
limits on the use and practice of RTI, thereby establishing a solid operational foundation
for it. Both of these achievements have helped RTI establish a solid operational
foundation.

In the current environment, an RTI regime that takes into account the deficiencies of the
current system while simultaneously delivering maximum transparency and
accountability without compromising the efficacy of governance is an absolute must. It
is vital to remember that the preamble of the RTI Act acknowledges the need for the
practical harmonization of competing public interests. This is something that must
always be kept in mind.

According to the RTI Act's preamble, the Act is "...an Act to provide for setting out the
practical regime of right to information for citizens to secure access to information under
the control of Public Authorities, to promote transparency and accountability in the
working of every Public Authority..."

In addition, the prologue contains the following statement: "It is necessary, therefore, to
provide precise information to those who desire to obtain it."

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It is abundantly clear that the Act provides for two distinct methods of disseminating
information to the general public: 1. the proactive disclosure of information by the
government itself regarding the promotion of transparency and accountability in the
workings of every Public Authority; and 2. the disclosure of information upon request by
individual citizens who seek information. Both of these strategies are explained in detail
below.

Furthermore, the information subject to the Act can be divided into two categories: 1.
information that encourages transparency and accountability in the workings of every
public authority, the disclosure of which helps to contain or discourage corruption, as
listed in clauses (b) and (c) of section 4(1); and 2. other information held by public
authority that does not fall under section 4(1) (b) (c).

The public authorities are required to suo-motu widely disseminate the information that
falls under the first category in order to ensure that it is readily accessible to the general
public.

Section 4 of the RTI Act1 imposes a variety of responsibilities and obligations on public
authorities, one of which is to keep all of their records properly catalogued and indexed.
This fact should be brought to your attention, as Section 4 imposes a variety of
responsibilities and obligations on public authorities.

This is should be done in a manner and format that facilitates the exercise of the right to
access information. The public authority is required to ensure that all computerizable
records are computerised and linked via a network so that they are accessible to
everyone in the country. According to section 4(1)(a) of the Act, the public body is
required to comply with this demand within a reasonable amount of time, if it has the
requisite resources.

Before developing key policies or announcing decisions that will have an impact on the
public, every public authority is obligated by subsection 4(1)(c) to make available to the
public any and all relevant information.

It is also expected to explain its administrative or quasi-judicial decisions to the affected

parties (section 4(1)(d)). and

Furthermore, the public authority is required to: a. Suomotu act to provide such
information (section 4(2)); b. Ensure wide dissemination of information and easy access

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to it (section 4(3)); and c. Disseminate information cost-effectively, in the local
language, and through the most effective method of communication (section 4(4)).

It is of the utmost importance to remember that the RTI Act ultimately stipulates that all
public records and information must be transferred into an electronic format. This is an
essential criteria that must be satisfied.

Regrettably, Section 4(1)(b) of the Act, which established a publication timetable for
various categories of public information, has not been implemented to the needed
standard. This major provision of the RTI Act has been honoured more in violation than
in compliance by the government, maybe because it does not carry any form of penalty.
Neither is information that has been actively disclosed often updated. In accordance with
the terms of the Act, the information must be updated annually; nevertheless, a
substantial portion of the data must be updated in "real time." In addition, the quality of
the information released by suomotu is quite low, and it does not adequately meet the
needs of the population in terms of information providing.

It has been suggested that the following steps should be made to rectify the situation:
Annual audits of proactive information disclosure should be mandated, and audit
findings should be posted on the websites of all public entities.

State governments should ensure that comprehensive monitoring of proactive

information disclosure is conducted.

In addition, state information commissions must lay a heavy focus in their decisions and
recommendations on the precise compliance of RTI Act Sections 4(1(a) and (b), as well
as Section 4(1(c)) (2).

CONCLUSION
Thus it can be rightly mentioned that Right to Information act is an agent of good
governance and transparent government .It makes administration more accountable to
the people. It makes people aware of administration and gives them an opportunity to
take part in decision making process. It promoted democratic ideology by promoting
openness and transparency in the administration. It reduces the chances of corruption
and abuse of authority by public servants. Since the act is prepared for people‘s interest,
hence it success also depends on how they exercise the act. Moreover, there is need
active participation from people, NGO‘s, civil society groups, coordination among RTI

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officials, integrity among government departments and political will from government
and elected leaders.

BIBLOGRAPHY

 https://www.manupatrafast.com (last seen at 10th June 2019)

 https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/defaultinterstitial.cms (last seen
at 10th June 2019 )
 https://indiankanoon.org (last seen at 10th June 2019 )
 https://www.livelaw.in ( last seen at 10th June 2019 )
 Right To Information Act 2005

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