<Interview> In the #COVIDー19 lockdown, we have slid back to an age where information is disclosed to citizens only on need-to-know basis by govt officials & people’s right to know as a principle is ignored, said RTI activist Venkatesh Nayak of @CHRI_INT bit.ly/2BnFYMb
Context for the statement above: Nayak was responding to questions about the recent legally binding advisory issued by the Central Information Commission to the Modi govt to release data about migrant workers who continue to remain stranded across India. bit.ly/2BnFYMb
This advisory was issued by the CIC in response to Nayak's complaint about being denied information concerning stranded migrant workers across India that he had sought through an RTI application filed in the chief labour commissioner’s office. bit.ly/2BnFYMb
Nayak filed an RTI application nearly 2 weeks after the Chief Labour Commissioner, on 8 April, wrote a letter to his regional colleagues seeking information within 3 days about migrant workers who were stranded across India. His RTI asked for this info+ bit.ly/2BnFYMb
To be uploaded on the website of the Chief Labour Commissioner. He didn't even ask it for himself. When I asked why he wanted this data to be online, Nayak said, 'making the data public is an important first step towards devising policy solutions..' bit.ly/2BnFYMb
'...for the millions of migrant workers who have not yet gone back home and are out of work.' Nayak told the same to the Central Information Commissioner Vanaja Sarna who held an out of turn hearing in this matter. She agreed with Nayak's reasoning. bit.ly/2BnFYMb
In her advisory, Sarna criticised the Chief Labour Commissioner's office & said she was "pained to see such a callous & non-serious attitude of the CPIO while handling the RTI application." IC Sarna also asked the data to be uploaded within a week. bit.ly/2BnFYMb
In this interview, we discuss the issues & concerns of migrant workers as well as the manner in which the Right to Information is being implemented by the Narendra Modi govt as well as various state governments during the #COVIDー19 pandemic. Do read: bit.ly/2BnFYMb
UPDATE: Few hours after this interview was published, Nayak was told by the CIC that data on stranded migrant workers was uploaded by CLC. But on looking closely, he noticed that it is incomplete & not in the appropriate format so it conceals imp details. bit.ly/3gVXIhX
Nayak was told that the data, comprising total number of stranded migrants in different states and union territories, had been uploaded a day prior. The actual document with data, though, does not mention any dates or literally any other important detail. bit.ly/3gVXIhX
The quiet manner in which the Chief Labour Commissioner’s office uploaded ‘incomplete’ data without sharing it with Nayak or issuing a public statement, indicates that it had chosen to follow the CIC’s advisory in a token way & it may be concealing info bit.ly/3gVXIhX
The RTI activist Venkatesh Nayak of @CHRI_INT now plans to file a complaint of non-compliance of the CIC's advisory by the CLC so that all relevant details about stranded migrant workers are released on the Chief Labour Commissioner's website. #COVID19 bit.ly/3gVXIhX
