Tamilnadu State Information Commission to reply to RTI appeals in Braille
15 Jun, 2012The State Information Commission (SIC) of Tamilnadu has taken an initiative with the help from the National Institute for the Visually Handicapped whereby the blind in the state can now get replies to their queries under the Right to Information (RTI) Act in Braille. Such a programme is implemented for the first time in the country and Tamilnadu will become the first State to accept applications filed in Braille. As per the State Information Commissioner Mr. K S Sripathi, the programme is expected to help more than seven lakh visually challenged people in the state. It was taken up following requests from visually challenged persons across the state. The Commission will prepare the reply in the printed format just like in any other case which will, however, be forwarded to the National Institute for the Visually Handicapped, where it will be converted into Braille. The applicant will be charged Rs 1/- for each page of information, as the financial constraints did not allow the SIC to provide information for free.
This step would help blind people file RTI applications or receive replies without depending on others. This step calls for a similar arrangement to be made at the level of the PIO and also at the level of other Information Commissions.