RTI stands for Right to Information Act and the department is responsible for gathering and providing information related to any topic, department, law and procedure to the citizens of India. The RTI plays a huge role towards educating and providing information to any person, since this allows every person to get background information on the right manner of approaching different situations and processes. It also helps root out badgering by government officials and reduce corruptions, thus helping citizens follow the right approach and process without being dependent on agents and other guides. To apply for RTI, the following process must be followed:
There are two ways in which RTI application can be made, namely manually through RTI customer support desks situated in all judicial complexes and by simply applying online.
Offline or manual RTI application
For people who are not familiar with digital communication processes need to visit the RTI assistance counters, where they will receive proper guidance on how to draft the application to receive information regarding their queries. There are professional legal advisors at each of the RTI desks who will help gather the information linked to the query and move on to draft the application requesting the information you need. This process may take between 1-2 hours, but the waiting time may vary depending on the number of people waiting in the queue to be assisted.
Online RTI applications
The online RTI process is much faster and can either be done directly or through subsidiary websites which will assist you drafting the applications in the correct and legal manner. You must remember that this is an application to receive information on a specific topic and this must be drafted in the right manner. There is no dispute or quarrel and only information and guidance regarding this said topic are being gathered for the person to move on to the next step. Online RTI applications Process involves:
• Logging on to the RTI website and filling your application
Here you need to log on to http://www.onlinerti.com/ and click on the Apply icon which is situated on the top right corner of the web page. This will redirect you to the application page where you need to fill out your details and request for information regarding a specific topic. You must make sure the draft in well planned as RTI applications are limited to some specified word per application. On completion, you simply need to submit the application. You may also need to deposit small amount of fees at the end.
• Editing and professional Draft preparation
On submitting your first draft, it is received by the RTI professional draft team, which goes through the draft and edits it to professional draft. The draft requires emitting any non-relevant information and following specific guidelines, so as to be accepted by the RTI officers who will follow up the information and forward the draft to the respective department. On completion of the draft editing, it is sent to you via email for counter checking and approval.
• RTI Application submission
On completion and approval of the final draft, it is sent to the RTI office via registered post. The applicable government fees are also included and the details shared with the complainant. It’s important to understand that the government and legal system recognize only registered post as a record so the RTI application must be sent via registered post and the register post receipt kept carefully in case it requires to be presented as evidence at a later stage.
As this right has made for people, it is good to use it and not to be fooled by the third party. Know your rights and use them PROUDLY!
