Information related to the conference organized by a society funded by PSUs

Background

A registered society funded by several PSUs, including Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC) organised an International Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition. In this context, the appellant filed an application under RTI with ONGC seeking copies of the tender, bidding procedure and other information related to the Conference and Exhibition. The Public Information Officer (PIO) informed the appellant that the said Society was not covered under the Right to Information (RTI) Act and hence details cannot be provided. The appellant claimed that the Conference and Exhibition in question was largely funded by PSUs of the Central Government, including ONGC and thus the moneys spent on the Conference and Exhibition fall in public domain.

View of CIC

The Central Information Commission (CIC) observed that the Conference and Exhibition was funded by PSUs of the Central Government, including ONGC and thus the money spent on the Conference and Exhibition fall in public domain. The Commission directed the PIO to allow the appellant to inspect the entire records relating to the Conference and Exhibition in-question and also provide the extracts there-from on payment of requisite fee.

Citation: Shri Jeewan Baboo v. ONGC in File No.CIC/LS/A/2011/003114