Govt departments take 6 months to reply to RTI queries: Survey TNN | Mar 26, 2012, 02.48AM IST           LUCKNOW: The Right to Information (RTI) Act may have helped unearth some of the biggest scams and anomalies in schemes like NRHM and MGNREGA, but it is yet to become a potent tool to fight injustice for the common man. And the biggest stumbling block is the attitude of the government departments. The Act lays down that information should be provided within 30 days to the seeker. But a survey taken up by an NGO shows that six months is the average time taken to answer an RTI query in UP by the government departments. Most of the times, information provided is either incomplete or irrelevant. The number of rising complaints at the State Information Commission (SIC) shows that government departments are yet to take the Act seriously. "Reason why we get more complaints than appeals is the non-functional first appeals authority," said an information commissioner. The RTI Act was enacted by the Parliament on June 15, 2005. In UP, the Act was made functional in April 2006. Despite being in existence for the past six years, the Act is yet to be implemented in letter and spirit in the state. Talking to RTI applicants who come to the commission everyday from far-flung districts makes one realise the ground reality. Many applicants said that they had missed the date of hearing in their case on some or the other occasion in the past because they did not get the notice by the commission delivered on time. The commission, though, has started uploading the cause list on its website, the low net penetration does not make it happening. There are applicants who have waited for years to get the information they sought. The poor level of awareness about the Act is another major roadblock. The government should keep conducting workshops and seminars to educate people and officers about the Act. A lot can be changed for RTI if State Information Commission (SIC) is given financial autonomy. "Central government should fund state information commissions to retain their autonomous structure," said sources. State government can allocate a contingency fund for the SIC also.