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Sunday, August 3, 2008
एएमयू : पीएफ का मनमाना निवेश
अलीगढ़, 23 जून, 2008 www.jagran.com page 16
एएमयू : पीएफ का मनमाना निवेश
संवाददाता, अलीगढ़ : अलीगढ़ मुस्लिम विश्वविद्यालय के कर्मचारियों की भविष्य निधि की एफडी एएमयू कानून को धता बताते हुए फाइनेंस आफिस ने किसी अन्य बैंक में करा दी है, जबकि एक्ट और आर्डिनेंस में साफ निर्देश है कि इसका निवेश भारतीय स्टेट बैंक की एएमयू शाखा में ही किया जाए। इस बात का खुलासा एएमयू दर्शन शास्त्र विभाग में डा. तारिक उल इस्लाम द्वारा सूचना के अधिकार के तहत मांगी गई सूचना में हुआ है। सूचना के अधिकार के तहत डा. तारिक उल इस्लाम ने 10 अप्रैल को एक सूचना मांगी थी। एएमयू के जनसूचना अधिकारी को भेजे पत्र में उन्होंने पूछा था कि एक अप्रैल 2007 से 10 अप्रैल 2008 तक कितनी राशि बैंक में जमा की गई, किस-किस खाते में की गई और राशि जमा की गई वह कहां से आई। इसके अलावा किस बैंक में यह राशि जमा हुई और कितनी ब्याज दर पर हुई। डा. तारिक उल इस्लाम ने प्रत्येक जमा धन और निकासी का पूरा ब्यौरा भी मांगा था। वीसी ने एक्ट 19 (3) (विशेषाधिकार) का प्रयोग करके श्रेयस ग्रामीण बैंक जमालपुर में कुछ धन जमा करने का निर्णय लिया था। सूचना अधिकार के तहत डा. तारिक उल इस्लाम ने उस निर्णय की कापी और ईसी द्वारा पास किए गए प्रस्ताव की कापी भी मांगी थी। मांगी गई जानकारी का जवाब सहायक फाइनेंस अफसर ने दिया है, जिसमें उन्होंने बताया है कि आठ करोड़ रुपये की एफडी 36 महीने के लिए जमालपुर स्थित श्रेयस ग्रामीण बैंक में कराई गई है। इसमें वीसी ने अपने विशेषाधिकार का प्रयोग किया है। प्रयोग के पीछे यह तर्क दिया गया है कि वे राशि पर मिलने वाले ब्याज का नुकसान नहीं होने देना चाहते थे, इसलिए एक्ट 19 (3) का प्रयोग करके एफडी कराई गई है। कर्मचारियों की भविष्यनिधि (पीएफ) की एफडी कई नियमों को धता बताते हुए किया गया है। एएमयू के स्टेच्यू 61 के अपेंडिक्स (ए) के क्लॉज 13 में भविष्य निधि के बारे में साफ तौर पर निर्देश दिए गए हैं। इसमें कहा गया है कि जीपीएफ का निवेश केवल भारतीय स्टेट बैंक की एएमयू ब्रांच में ही कर सकते हैं। इस क्लाज में आगे बताया गया है कि ईसी के निर्देश पर किसी राष्ट्रीयकृत बैंक अथवा पोस्ट आफिस में निवेश किया जा सकता है। इसके अलावा एएमयू के धन के निवेश को लेकर अन्य जगहों पर निर्देश दिए गए हैं। इसमें एक्जीक्यूटिव आर्डिनेंस के चेप्टर दो के क्लॉज दो में साफ कहा गया है कि यदि तीन हजार रुपये से ज्यादा जमा करने हैं तो ईसी की परमीशन के साथ केवल भारतीय स्टेट बैंक में ही जमा होंगे। उसमें यह भी बताया गया है कि यदि बैंक बदली जाएगी तो उसके लिए बाकायदा एग्जीक्यूटिव काउंसिल निर्देश देगी। ईसी की जानकारी के बिना किसी दूसरे बैंक में एफडी कराने को लेकर कुछ जानकार लोग वित्तीय अनियमितता की आशंका जाहिर कर रहे हैं। जानकारी मांगने वाले डा. तारिक उल इस्लाम वीसी के विशेषाधिकार के प्रयोग पर हैरत जाहिर करते हुए कहते हैं कि एक्ट 19 (2) वीसी को केवल एक्जीक्यूटिव और एकेडमिक अधिकार प्रदान करता है, इसमें वित्तीय मामले नहीं आते। डा. इस्लाम इस मामले में वीसी को नहीं फाइनेंस आफिस को दोषी मानते हैं। उन्होंने कहा कि एफडी की मैच्योरिटी की तारीख नजदीक आ रही है, यह पहले से ही पता होगा। वीसी ने एक साल में कई ईसी की बैठक बुलाई हैं, यदि फाइनेंस आफिस चाहता तो ईसी में यह मामला पास हो सकता था।
Sunday, July 6, 2008
CIC penalizes architecture school official for RTI inaction
Publication: Times Of India Delhi; Date:2008 Jul 02; Section:Times Nation; Page Number 19
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
New Delhi: The Central Information Commission (CIC) has slapped a penalty of Rs 25,000 on the School of Planning and Architecture’s public information officer for inaction on a Right to Information appeal for over three months.
In his order, information commissioner O P Kejriwal has directed the PIO, D R Bains, to pay Rs 25,000 for causing a delay of ‘‘more than 100 days in providing the required information to the appellant’’. He has ordered the SPA director in charge and appellate authority, K T Ravindran, to ensure compliance in recovery of the penalty by August 10.
The appellant had asked for information relating to the action taken against his daughter who was not permitted to sit for an exam due to shortage of attendance.
In his RTI filed on September 1, 2006, to the human resource development ministry, appellant Ramesh Chandra had sought to know what action was being taken against Prof Mahavir, head of the department of physical planning, and Prof Subir Saha, SPA director-in charge, for their ‘‘misconduct’’ in detaining his daughter and other students from appearing for an exam. Chandra also wanted to know whether his daughter Sudeepti Chandra would be permitted to attend classes of fourth year.
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
New Delhi: The Central Information Commission (CIC) has slapped a penalty of Rs 25,000 on the School of Planning and Architecture’s public information officer for inaction on a Right to Information appeal for over three months.
In his order, information commissioner O P Kejriwal has directed the PIO, D R Bains, to pay Rs 25,000 for causing a delay of ‘‘more than 100 days in providing the required information to the appellant’’. He has ordered the SPA director in charge and appellate authority, K T Ravindran, to ensure compliance in recovery of the penalty by August 10.
The appellant had asked for information relating to the action taken against his daughter who was not permitted to sit for an exam due to shortage of attendance.
In his RTI filed on September 1, 2006, to the human resource development ministry, appellant Ramesh Chandra had sought to know what action was being taken against Prof Mahavir, head of the department of physical planning, and Prof Subir Saha, SPA director-in charge, for their ‘‘misconduct’’ in detaining his daughter and other students from appearing for an exam. Chandra also wanted to know whether his daughter Sudeepti Chandra would be permitted to attend classes of fourth year.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
More Corrupt: India slips in Transparency International rankings
Publication: Times Of India Delhi; Date:2008 Jul 05; Section:Editorial; Page Number 18
Recently a raid on the deputy commissioner of commercial taxes in Bangalore revealed that he is the owner of 102 cars. That appears to confirm the common perception that corruption is an intrinsic part of Indian public life. This is validated by surveys too. Transparency International has placed India two notches lower on this year’s Corruption Perception Index than it had in 2007. The only saving grace is that compared to its neighbours, India seems to have done well. Pakistan, for instance, is at 140th position compared to India’s 74th. Nepal and Sri Lanka are ranked a lowly 135 and 96 respectively. China though is ranked one place above India. Another new study by Transparency International and the Centre for Media Studies found that Indians believed public services to be more corrupt than they actually are.
But can we take heart from that? Not really, as the 102 cars in the possession of Bangalore’s taxman show. India still has miles to go in rooting out corruption in public life. The introduction of Right to Information (RTI) legislation may have had an impact on making government more accountable. An independent media working as a watchdog also helps. But hush money, graft and bribes are rampant in public life. And this is true for all government offices that deal with the public.
What is worrying is that the Transparency International report on India found that about Rs 9,000 crore had been paid as bribes by the poor. Indeed, the poor are disproportionately affected by corruption since they depend more on public services. According to the report, one out of every three people living below the poverty line in India paid bribes to access basic public services such as education, health care and water. Corruption is proving to be the biggest hurdle in the way of poverty alleviation programmes. Leakages in government spending programmes mean that very little is actually reaching the poor.
However, all is not lost. The RTI and the media are contributing to efforts to tackle corruption in government and politics. That is a healthy sign. But much more needs to be done to fight corruption. After all, corruption is a key factor in keeping the benefits of India’s growth from trickling down, leading to inequality and political instability.
Recently a raid on the deputy commissioner of commercial taxes in Bangalore revealed that he is the owner of 102 cars. That appears to confirm the common perception that corruption is an intrinsic part of Indian public life. This is validated by surveys too. Transparency International has placed India two notches lower on this year’s Corruption Perception Index than it had in 2007. The only saving grace is that compared to its neighbours, India seems to have done well. Pakistan, for instance, is at 140th position compared to India’s 74th. Nepal and Sri Lanka are ranked a lowly 135 and 96 respectively. China though is ranked one place above India. Another new study by Transparency International and the Centre for Media Studies found that Indians believed public services to be more corrupt than they actually are.
But can we take heart from that? Not really, as the 102 cars in the possession of Bangalore’s taxman show. India still has miles to go in rooting out corruption in public life. The introduction of Right to Information (RTI) legislation may have had an impact on making government more accountable. An independent media working as a watchdog also helps. But hush money, graft and bribes are rampant in public life. And this is true for all government offices that deal with the public.
What is worrying is that the Transparency International report on India found that about Rs 9,000 crore had been paid as bribes by the poor. Indeed, the poor are disproportionately affected by corruption since they depend more on public services. According to the report, one out of every three people living below the poverty line in India paid bribes to access basic public services such as education, health care and water. Corruption is proving to be the biggest hurdle in the way of poverty alleviation programmes. Leakages in government spending programmes mean that very little is actually reaching the poor.
However, all is not lost. The RTI and the media are contributing to efforts to tackle corruption in government and politics. That is a healthy sign. But much more needs to be done to fight corruption. After all, corruption is a key factor in keeping the benefits of India’s growth from trickling down, leading to inequality and political instability.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
CIC takes on IAS lobby over appointment criteria
RIGHT TO KNOW, Manoj Mitta | TNN, Publication: Times Of India Delhi; Date:2008 Jun 25; Section:Times Nation; Page Number 13
New Delhi: Thanks to judicial intervention, the Central Information Commission (CIC) has mustered the will to take on the powerful IAS lobby on an appeal filed by Magsaysay awardee Arvind Kejriwal.
The disclosures ordered by CIC on June 12 have opened up the possibility of finding out how many of the senior officers appointed to the levels of secretary and additional secretary in various ministries fulfiled the prescribed criterion of ‘‘specific suitability.’’
A three-member bench of CIC directed the government that it could not claim to have complied with its orders although it had disclosed details of the appointments made only up to the level of joint secretary. Since most of the posts above the level of joint secretary are held by IAS officers, Kejriwal had sought information on all senior bureaucratic appointees to ascertain whether they met the central staffing scheme’s stipulation of ‘‘specific suitability’’ despite being drawn mainly from the generalist stream.
The three-member bench’s decision overturns an April 2007 order in which CIC member M M Ansari had rejected Kejriwal’s complaint that, by denying him access to the files, the government had failed to comply with a July 2006 direction for transparency.
Curiously, Ansari was allowed to be part of the three-member bench constituted to reconsider his April 2007 order in the wake of a Delhi high court direction obtained by Kejriwal in September 2007. In the event, the fresh hearing held this year did bring about
a change in his view as Ansari went along with the other two members on the bench in acknowledging that the government could hardly claim to have complied with CIC’s order without showing Kejriwal a scrap of paper related to the appointments of secretaries and additional secretaries.
In its unanimous order of June 12, the bench comprising Ansari, O P Kejariwal and Padma Balasubramanian directed the department of personnel and training and cabinet secretariat to allow inspection of — and make copies of — the files related to the appointments to the levels of secretary and additional secretary to the government of India. CIC also got around RTI restrictions on disclosure of third party information. This is because Kejriwal conceded that he would not seek copies of the annual confidential report of each of the officers. CIC agreed with his suggestion that he could be shown the chart displaying the grading of the officers. ‘‘Since the charts as such would not contain any personal information, the commission saw no objection in providing these to the appellant,’’ it said.
Kejriwal, a former revenue service officer, has been seeking to uncover the nature of bureaucratic postings since November 2005. His RTI application raised the hackles of the IAS lobby which saw it as an attempt to expose their near-monopoly over top posts regardless of their suitability for the increasingly technical demands of those jobs. The information asked for may lay bare the manipulations that allow an officer to be posted as telecom secretary, for instance, without having any qualification or experience in that specialized field.
New Delhi: Thanks to judicial intervention, the Central Information Commission (CIC) has mustered the will to take on the powerful IAS lobby on an appeal filed by Magsaysay awardee Arvind Kejriwal.
The disclosures ordered by CIC on June 12 have opened up the possibility of finding out how many of the senior officers appointed to the levels of secretary and additional secretary in various ministries fulfiled the prescribed criterion of ‘‘specific suitability.’’
A three-member bench of CIC directed the government that it could not claim to have complied with its orders although it had disclosed details of the appointments made only up to the level of joint secretary. Since most of the posts above the level of joint secretary are held by IAS officers, Kejriwal had sought information on all senior bureaucratic appointees to ascertain whether they met the central staffing scheme’s stipulation of ‘‘specific suitability’’ despite being drawn mainly from the generalist stream.
The three-member bench’s decision overturns an April 2007 order in which CIC member M M Ansari had rejected Kejriwal’s complaint that, by denying him access to the files, the government had failed to comply with a July 2006 direction for transparency.
Curiously, Ansari was allowed to be part of the three-member bench constituted to reconsider his April 2007 order in the wake of a Delhi high court direction obtained by Kejriwal in September 2007. In the event, the fresh hearing held this year did bring about
a change in his view as Ansari went along with the other two members on the bench in acknowledging that the government could hardly claim to have complied with CIC’s order without showing Kejriwal a scrap of paper related to the appointments of secretaries and additional secretaries.
In its unanimous order of June 12, the bench comprising Ansari, O P Kejariwal and Padma Balasubramanian directed the department of personnel and training and cabinet secretariat to allow inspection of — and make copies of — the files related to the appointments to the levels of secretary and additional secretary to the government of India. CIC also got around RTI restrictions on disclosure of third party information. This is because Kejriwal conceded that he would not seek copies of the annual confidential report of each of the officers. CIC agreed with his suggestion that he could be shown the chart displaying the grading of the officers. ‘‘Since the charts as such would not contain any personal information, the commission saw no objection in providing these to the appellant,’’ it said.
Kejriwal, a former revenue service officer, has been seeking to uncover the nature of bureaucratic postings since November 2005. His RTI application raised the hackles of the IAS lobby which saw it as an attempt to expose their near-monopoly over top posts regardless of their suitability for the increasingly technical demands of those jobs. The information asked for may lay bare the manipulations that allow an officer to be posted as telecom secretary, for instance, without having any qualification or experience in that specialized field.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
RTI Act effective against graft: U.N. report
The Hindu (National), Special Correspondent
“India has implemented key options”
NEW DELHI: The Right to Information Act 2005 was “one of the most progressive legislations” in the developing world for tackling corruption, according to a United Nations report released on Thursday.
India was one of the eight countries in Asia and the Pacific to enact such a legislation, the United Nations Development Report on “Tackling Corruption, Transforming Lives – Accelerating Human Development in Asia and the Pacific” said, adding it was perhaps too soon to judge whether the legislation had worked throughout the region.
The process through which the Act was drafted and came into force in India illustrated the power of sustained pressure: when the government proposed to amend the law to exclude some administrative files and Cabinet papers from it, intense pressure from civil society organisations forced it to drop the plan, the report said.
India’s law was particularly effective, the report said, because it specified information that must be disclosed on a proactive basis, including some that would help expose corruption.
Precise information
The Act also allowed individuals and organisations investigating corruption to ask for precise information.
For example, while generally excluding information from the intelligence agencies, it specifically allowed for the disclosure of information “pertaining to allegations of corruption or human rights violations.”
According to the report, India had implemented a number of key options to combat corruption.
They included the progressive Right to Information Act, using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and e-governance to make the administration more transparent, encouraging media and citizen initiatives and becoming a signatory to the United Nations Convention Against Corruption.
The report found that where democracy was most effective at checking corruption, it did not necessarily do so through the system-level “hardware” such as elections, but through the deeper ability to voice demands that were taken seriously by the government – that of the civil society organisation.
At the same time, there were many other ways individuals could act to combat corruption: asking questions, resisting demands for bribes, reporting the activities of corrupt officials and refusing to deal with corrupt businesses.
Role of media hailed
The report also appreciated the role of the media and investigative journalists against high-profile offenders leading to their resignations and prosecutions.
© Copyright 2000 - 2008 The Hindu
Date:13/06/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/06/13/stories/2008061351401300.htm Back
“India has implemented key options”
NEW DELHI: The Right to Information Act 2005 was “one of the most progressive legislations” in the developing world for tackling corruption, according to a United Nations report released on Thursday.
India was one of the eight countries in Asia and the Pacific to enact such a legislation, the United Nations Development Report on “Tackling Corruption, Transforming Lives – Accelerating Human Development in Asia and the Pacific” said, adding it was perhaps too soon to judge whether the legislation had worked throughout the region.
The process through which the Act was drafted and came into force in India illustrated the power of sustained pressure: when the government proposed to amend the law to exclude some administrative files and Cabinet papers from it, intense pressure from civil society organisations forced it to drop the plan, the report said.
India’s law was particularly effective, the report said, because it specified information that must be disclosed on a proactive basis, including some that would help expose corruption.
Precise information
The Act also allowed individuals and organisations investigating corruption to ask for precise information.
For example, while generally excluding information from the intelligence agencies, it specifically allowed for the disclosure of information “pertaining to allegations of corruption or human rights violations.”
According to the report, India had implemented a number of key options to combat corruption.
They included the progressive Right to Information Act, using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and e-governance to make the administration more transparent, encouraging media and citizen initiatives and becoming a signatory to the United Nations Convention Against Corruption.
The report found that where democracy was most effective at checking corruption, it did not necessarily do so through the system-level “hardware” such as elections, but through the deeper ability to voice demands that were taken seriously by the government – that of the civil society organisation.
At the same time, there were many other ways individuals could act to combat corruption: asking questions, resisting demands for bribes, reporting the activities of corrupt officials and refusing to deal with corrupt businesses.
Role of media hailed
The report also appreciated the role of the media and investigative journalists against high-profile offenders leading to their resignations and prosecutions.
© Copyright 2000 - 2008 The Hindu
Date:13/06/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/06/13/stories/2008061351401300.htm Back
Sunday, June 15, 2008
UP Govt GO for making RTI effective
Lucknow: The Right to Information Act may yet catch a road to effective implementation. Chief secretary Atul Kumar Gupta has, in government order dated June 6, laid down guidelines to be mandatorily followed by public authority vis-a-vis RTI Act.
Addressed to all principal secretaries, heads of departments, divisional commissioners and district magistrates, the order has asked authorities to get PAs follow RTI norms. Compiled information from PAs is to be submitted to administrative reforms department by June 30. The order has defined PAs as bodies owned, controlled and funded by Central and state governments. PAs also include nongovernment bodies, directly or indirectly funded by government. The most important requirement is maintaining of records, indexing and sequencing of documents.
The order has pointed out that computerised records could make the job of providing timely information all the more easy, as these records would have better accessibility. The section 4(1)(B) of the Act entails 16 categories of information all PAs are expected to upload on their website. PAs will have to provide information like names and designations of public information officers (PIOs), their PAs specialities, work, powers and duties of officers and staff, documents held by them and directions issued to them.
Publication of all categories of information is a must. PAs can also list information other than categories defined under the section. PAs will have to update information every year and publicise information through newspapers, announcements, information boards and internet. PAs will have to suo moto disclose information to public through various media so that lesser number of people resort to RTI Act.
Publication: Times Of India Lucknow; Date:2008 Jun 15; Section:Times City; Page Number 3
Addressed to all principal secretaries, heads of departments, divisional commissioners and district magistrates, the order has asked authorities to get PAs follow RTI norms. Compiled information from PAs is to be submitted to administrative reforms department by June 30. The order has defined PAs as bodies owned, controlled and funded by Central and state governments. PAs also include nongovernment bodies, directly or indirectly funded by government. The most important requirement is maintaining of records, indexing and sequencing of documents.
The order has pointed out that computerised records could make the job of providing timely information all the more easy, as these records would have better accessibility. The section 4(1)(B) of the Act entails 16 categories of information all PAs are expected to upload on their website. PAs will have to provide information like names and designations of public information officers (PIOs), their PAs specialities, work, powers and duties of officers and staff, documents held by them and directions issued to them.
Publication of all categories of information is a must. PAs can also list information other than categories defined under the section. PAs will have to update information every year and publicise information through newspapers, announcements, information boards and internet. PAs will have to suo moto disclose information to public through various media so that lesser number of people resort to RTI Act.
Publication: Times Of India Lucknow; Date:2008 Jun 15; Section:Times City; Page Number 3
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