Bengaluru: The state govt late Saturday night issued orders to bring the right to information (RTI) filing under the Sakala services.In a note issued by Praja Seva department, govt has noted that many RTI applications are still submitted on paper by post or by hand. “All such applications shall be now entered on the RTI online portal by the receiving public authority within two days of receipt. This online entry has been notified as a guaranteed service under the Karnataka Sakala Services act of 2011,” said the note.The decision effectively means that all RTI applications will receive an online registration number and applicants can track the status of application at any time. “It also means that no RTI application can be lost, ignored or kept off the record,” said the note.Furthermore, if the application is not entered on the portal within two days, the citizen is eligible for compensatory cost under the Sakala act and the responsible officials will be liable to pay as per the act.In a separate order, the govt has also increased the compensation to be paid by erring officials who delay or do not provide the requisite service to citizens within a stipulated time under Sakala services. While previously, the maximum amount was Rs 500, at Rs 20 per day, the same has now been increased to a maximum of Rs 1,500 for a 25-day delay.It has also set limits of maximum Rs 100 for the delay of first five days, a maximum of Rs 300 for 10 days, maximum of Rs 600 for 15 days and a maximum of Rs 1,000 for 20-day delay.If the citizen faces the same problem even after the penal action, then his or her application shall see an additional Rs 1,500 penalty.The govt has also allowed RTI online application filing at all Bangalore One, Karnataka One and Grama One centres.
