City bureaucrats urged to take RTI test

The Kejriwal government has urged public employees to take a test on the Right to Information Act, 2005, in November.

Eight hundred employees of various government departments, including the ones not under the purview of the AAP government like the Delhi police and the New Delhi Municipal Council, had applied for the voluntary test last year. Only over two-fifths of the applicants, however, took the one-and-a-half-hour test. Under the scheme of Self Learning of the RTI Act, 2005, introduced in the year 2010, all staff members working in the Delhi government departments and local bodies can sit for the test. According to the government, separate test papers will be set for lower division clerks and Group D employees, upper division clerks and assistants, and superintendents and above.

According to the city government, complaints of non-compliance by the users of the RTI Act reveal that various government departments or organisations are not complying with the provisions laid down by the transparency law. A recent government circular has urged public offices to ensure maximum turnout for the comprehension test. All those scoring 50 per cent and above will be awarded with cash prizes of Rs 600 to Rs 1,500. The candidates who secure top three positions in different categories will be given an additional cash award.

The circular issued on Sunday July 7 said: “A need has been felt to enhance awareness among public information officers working in the offices under the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi.” Applicants have until September 30 to apply for the test, which is likely to be held in November. Last year, a chemistry lecturer scored a lowly 44 marks in the “superintendents and above” category and a junior clerk had aced the test by scoring 90 marks in the “lower division clerks and Group D” category.