TIRUNELVELI: The State Information Commission has sought an explanation from 50 officials serving in various government departments for not providing proper information within the stipulated 30-day period to the public, who had sought information under the Right to Information Act.

"If the explanation to be submitted by the officials is not satisfactory or irrelevant, the Commission will recommend the heads of these departments to initiate stringent action against their erring subordinates," State Chief Information Commissioner S. Ramakrishnan said here on Thursday.

State Information Commissioners G. Ramakrishnan and R. Rathinasamy held discussions with the District Collectors of Tirunelveli (G. Prakash), Kanyakumari (Sunil Paliwal) and Tuticorin (R. Palaniyandi) at the Collectorate here on Thursday on problems officials faced while executing the Act and methods to be adopted for its effective implementation.

Besides sensitising the public about the statute's advantages, officials should be trained on various features of the law to help them discharge their functions effectively, Mr. Ramakrishnan said. To avail of information, the public should pay a fee of Rs. 50 for each petition and Rs. 2 to photocopy each page of the document. If the official concerned failed to attend to the petition and did not provide a correct and satisfactory reply within 30 days, the matter could be taken up with an appellate authority. "In case of a failure at these two levels, the petitioner can approach the Commission."

Between January 28 and June 20, 2006, the commission received 423 appeals from the public, including nine each from Tirunelveli and Tuticorin and two from Kanyakumari. Mr. Ramakrishnan said senior-level officials were being trained at Chennai and they, in turn, would train their subordinates. After completing the district-level discussions, the Commission would submit a report to the State Assembly and Chief Secretary on their findings.

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