The person who filed the RTI saved 80,000 rupees!
Reading this news from Indore, Madhya Pradesh, you will surely be astonished. Here, an RTI activist exercised their Right to Information and sought a response from the government. The response they received was so massive that it filled an entire SUV with paperwork, not just a small vehicle. The administration provided them with a response comprising 40,000 pages. What's even more interesting is that the person didn't have to pay a single penny for this response.
Normally, applicants have to pay the government Rs. 2 for each page in response to such queries. However, this only applies if the response is received within 30 days. Due to a delay in receiving a response from the government's end, activist Dharmendra Shukla did not have to pay any money.
What was the question?
While talking to Lallantop, Dharmendra Shukla revealed that he had filed an RTI application nearly three months ago with the Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) of Indore. According to Dharmendra, he mentioned that:
"I had requested details about tenders and bill payments related to the procurement of medicines, medical equipment, and other supplies during the COVID-19 period. I sought information regarding all the purchased supplies, every tender, the quantities and items procured, information related to cashbooks, bills, and vouchers - basically, everything purchased during the COVID-19 pandemic."
Dharmendra stated that he did not receive this information within one month. Therefore, he contacted the First Appellate Authority, Dr. Sharad Gupta. Dharmendra explained that:
"Dr. Sharad Gupta accepted my appeal. He directed that the information should be provided to me free of cost."
On Thursday, 27th July, Dharmendra received the RTI response. He went to collect it in his car, which was completely filled with documents. Dharmendra mentioned that his entire SUV was filled with documents, and only the driver's seat was empty.
According to media reports, the First Appellate Authority and the Regional Joint Director of the State Health Department, Dr. Sharad Gupta, have confirmed this matter. Gupta has instructed the CMHO (Chief Medical and Health Officer) to take appropriate action against the employees responsible for not providing information on time. This has resulted in a loss of approximately 80,000 rupees from the government's treasury.
