Number of persons employed by Air India under ‘Sports Quota’ and its cost implications were sought - CIC issued a warning to Secretary, Air India Sports Promotion Board, to ensure that reply to an RTI application is provided within 30 days of receipt
13 Aug, 2018Facts:
The appellant vide RTI application dated 09.12.2016 sought information on six points as under;
1. Number of persons, sports wise, region wise employed by Air India under ‘Sports Quota’ on permanent basis.
2. Details about the cost implication for Air India per month as on 30.11.2016.
3. Details of approvals given by the airlines to anyone to run or assist in the running of privately sponsored sports academies in addition to their employment on full time basis in the airline.
4. Details of periodic verifications/actions taken by the airlines to ensure that the above employees continue to be active in terms of actual playing and they were not limited to doling out of expert advices only, in the process continuing to enjoy benefits of full time employment.
5. Copy(s) of order(s) exempting such categories of employees from daily attendance.
6. Details of advantages/benefits the Airline had received in the last 3 years, both tangible and intangible, because of these appointments under the sports quota. The CPIO’s reply is not on record. Due to non-receipt of any reply from the CPIO, the appellant filed first appeal first appeal on 19.01.2017. The first appellant Authority (FAA) disposed of the appeal by virtue of its order dated 07.02.2017. Aggrieved with the non-supply of the desired information from the respondent authority, the appellant filed second appeal under the provision of Section 19 of the RTI Act before the Central Information Commission on 27.03.2017.
Grounds for Second Appeal
The CPIO did not provide the desired information.
Order
Appellant: Present
Respondent: Shri Nikhil Chopra, Assistant General Manager along with Shri Sanjeev Joshi, representatives of the PIO, Air India Ltd.
During the hearing, representative of PIO submitted that they had provided the requisite reply vide their letter dated 21.06.2018(check) and the First Appellate Authority (FAA)’s order dated 07.02.2017. The reply furnished to the appellant is just and proper and hence the case might be dismissed.
The appellant submitted that he was not satisfied with the reply received from the respondent as he got only partial reply. On perusal of the relevant case record, it was noted by the Commission that only partial / interim reply was provided on point nos. 1 and 2 of the said RTI application. A more comprehensive reply should have been provided to the appellant as all the sought for information is eminently disclosable under the relevant provisions of the RTI Act. The rest of the replies on point nos. 3, 4 & 5 of the RTI application were considered as just and proper by the Commission.
Be that as it may, since no desired information was provided to the appellant in the present case in regard to some point contained in the said RTI application, the present respondent CPIO, Secretary, Sports Promotion Board, Air India Ltd, New Delhi is directed to provide revised point wise reply on point nos. 1 and 2 complete in all respects to the appellant as available on record in the form of certified true copies of the documents sought e.g. note sheets, letters, correspondences, e-mails etc.(legible copies), free of charge u/s 7(6) of the RTI Act within 30 days of the receipt of the order. For this purpose, the concerned CPIO/PIO, can take assistance of any other office/department u/s 5(4) of the RTI Act.
The respondent CPIO is further directed to send a report containing the copy of the revised reply and the date of despatch of the same to the RTI appellant within 07 days thereafter to the Commission for record. It was also noted by the Commission that delayed information was provided to the appellant which is deplorable for which the then CPIO, Secretary, Air India Sports Promotion Board, Air India Ltd, New Delhi needs to be issued a warning. The then respondent CPIO, Secretary, Air India Sports Promotion Board, Air India Ltd, New Delhi is issued a warning that full, final and comprehensive reply to an RTI application should have been provided within the time period as stipulated under the RTI Act and he should ensure that in future in every case reply to an RTI application is invariably provided within 30 days of receipt of the said application.
With the above observation/direction the appeal is disposed of.
Copies of the order be sent to the concerned parties free of cost.
[Amitava Bhattacharyya]
Information Commissioner
Citation: C Mohan v. Air India Ltd in File No : CIC/AIRIN/A/2017/121731, Date of hearing : 02.07.2018