RTI Is a Strong Foundation of Democracy: Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla

Right to Information (RTI) is a strong foundation of democracy, Telangana Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla said. He stressed the need to bring procedural uniformity in the implementation of the RTI Act while further strengthening transparency and accountability. The Governor inaugurated and addressed a national conference on ‘Uniformity in RTI Implementation – Challenges and Solutions’ at the Administrative Staff College in Khairatabad on Thursday. The conference was organised jointly by the National Federation of Information Commissioners in India (NFICI), Delhi, the Telangana Information Commission and the Administrative Staff College of India. Shukla said information held by government departments essentially belongs to the people and that it is the government’s responsibility to make such information available to citizens in a timely and accessible manner.

The Governor said the number of RTI applications and appeals disposed of should not be considered the sole measure of success; the real measure is the extent to which transparency in governance has improved. He called for a strong network among information commissions across the country to facilitate the exchange of best practices, successful initiatives and experiences. Central Information Commissioner R.K. Goyal, ASCI Chairman K. Padmanabhaiah and Director General Dr N. Ramesh Kumar also addressed the conference. On the occasion, the Governor unveiled the newsletter ‘Telangana Transparent Times – Samachara Darpanam’, brought out by the Telangana Information Commission. Telangana State Chief Information Commissioner G. Chandrasekhar Reddy and Chief Information Commissioners from various states attended the event.