REFORMS AT CIC

It refers to welcome initiative of Central Information Commission in its weekly meeting of 19.02.2008 for introducing a web-page on website of the Commission for feedback of working of the Commission and implementation of ‘Right-To-Information Act’ in interest of users of the Act. Most people of this great nation are still unaware of RTI Act which has given power of a Parliamentarian to commoners for grilling public-authorities for a transparent working. RTI Act can and should be publicised adequately to reach masses by the Commission itself by giving financial autonomy to the Commission. Presently those responsible in government to publicise the Act may perhaps be avoiding such measures because of being uncomfortable with the Act. RTI Act may also need some modifications on basis of experience in initial two and a half years of its implementation.

But any such reform may be misused to dilute the Act by some additional modifications which are being resisted by experienced RTI activists. It may be noted that even the public-authority Supreme Court found transparency and accountability generated by the wonderful Act so disturbing that it even suggested de-facto exemption from the Act by even asking for the second and final authority to be at Supreme Court registry itself rather than with Central Information Commission!

SUBHASH C. AGRAWAL

RAILWAY BUDGET

It refers to Rail-Budget presented in the Lok Sabha. Railway Minister should have given thought to inconvenience caused to passengers by railway-porters by quarrelling on their portage-charges before giving railway-porters status of government-employees. It is an unhealthy tradition for all Railway Ministers from different parties/alliances to give undue preference to their states and native places. Same did Lalu Prasad Yadav by creating an unusual link between his home-district to that of his in-laws place. Gimmicks of a people’s budget are overshadowed by corruption in getting reserved seats/berths. Fares of trains like Rajdhani and Shatabdi Express can be further lowered by abolishing compulsory charging for food in tickets. System will avoid waste of money for those who do not prefer outside food. Computer-programming for reservation of seats/berths should be modified so that group-reservation may find reservation in a block rather than in a scattered manner as at present.

ONGC COINS

India Government Mint invited booking of coin-sets issued to commemorate ONGC-golden-jubilee celebrations celebrated long ago in the year 2006 now two years later in the year 2008. Coin-sets in three denominations of Rs 50, 5 and 2 are priced at rupees 920 for proof-sets and rupees 502 for uncirculated category apart from VAT and packing charges. According to information received on my RTI petition, only 6000 to 14000 coin-sets are booked due to this age-old cumbersome system which needs to be simplified to start sale of coin-sets right from date of release of new coins from convenient sale-points including selected bank-branches, all offices of Reserve Bank of India and philatical counters. There may be only one highest-priced ‘proof’ coin-set with all issued coins, abolishing ‘uncirculated’ category of coin-sets. Popularising coin-collection on lines of philately, will give net revenue-earning because such coin-sets never come in actual circulation. Educational institutions and others can then be motivated to give coin-sets and philatical items as prizes in functions instead of normal trophies and momentos.