Panel discussion on RTI

Panel discussion on RTI

A panel discussion took place after the lecture of the Chief Information Commissioner on “RTI Act – a tool for good governance”. The Moderator was Mr N Raghuraman, State Head – MP(Editorial), DB Corp (Bhaskar Group) while the Panelist comprised of:

·     Dr R K Verma, Additional Commissioner, Central Excise, Customs & Service Tax

·     Mr Sanjay Dubey, Managing Director, MP Audyogik Kendra Vikas Nigam (I) Ltd

·     Mr  S K Mishra, Chief General Manager, State Bank of India

·     Mr Sanjay Jha, Executive Director, Dale Carnegie Training India

·     Prof (Dr) Ghayur Alam, Professor of Law, National Law Institute University

There was a serious discussion about the how the RTI Act could be used for improving the governance. Prof. Alam emphasised the role of RTI in attaining ‘poorna swaraj’. Shri Mishra informed the audience about the steps taken by the banks for enforcing the RTI Act. He also talked of the RBI guidelines which the banks have to follow. Shri Jha emphatically pointed out that the trade and industry are ultimately working for the people and mostly obtain their land from the government at subsidised rates. The panel was unanimous that the industry should also be brought under the RTI Act. Shri Dubey said that anyone can walk into a government office to see the files and it is leading to more accountability. Dr. Verma suggested that the basics of the RTI Act should be included in the curriculum of the schools and colleges. The audience raised many questions to the panelists. Shri Raghuraman summed up the panel findings and made a call for the citizens to use the RTI Act more often.