Censorship will render RIA meaningless, says PHDCCI

New Delhi, July 21 (UNI) Industry chamber PHDCCI today expressed grave concern over the amendment in the Right to Information Act saying that the censorship will render the RIA meaningless and will be used as a shield by the bureaucracy.

The right to information should not come with any riders and it will amount to the denial of information itself.

According to the proposed amendment, file notings relating to identifiable individuals, group of individuals, organisations, appointments, matters relating to inquiries and departmental proceedings shall not be disclosed.

The government's logic in excluding these bits of ''valuable information'' is not clear. On the other hand, the right of a citizen to obtain information from officials is absolute, the chamber affirmed.

''Centre's justification is that it is excluded in other countries like the US, UK and Australia,'' PHDCCI Secretary General Bibek Debroy said adding that there could be no justification for excluding file notings from the purview of RIA 2005.

In the US all file notings are made public soon as the decision is taken, he added.

UNI PV RA KN1714