TURA: The AYWO in Tura has threatened to file a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) against the Horticulture Department in South Garo Hills for failing to provide information to an RTI filed with the office recently.
According to the organization, after receiving several complaints from farmers of the region it had filed the RTI on March 6 this year, reply to which has not been given till date. The organization added that when it had visited the office to enquire on the status of the RTI, staff at the office had resorted to delaying tactics and refused to furnish the information sought for.
“To our utter surprise, they informed us that they had misplaced the application and therefore they cannot process the RTI. They even went to the extent of misleading us that the person who is dealing with the RTI under the department is transferred and the new dealing assistant cannot do anything about the matter. We tried to file the application again but the department is reluctant to received the application,” it’s General Secretary, Sengbath Chambugong Marak said.
The organization alleged that when the president of the AYWO in Siju approached the office as directed by the leaders in Tura, he was intimidated by the staff with a warning that ‘they can file an FIR against him’.
Condemning the alleged unprofessional and high handed attitude of the department, the organization gave it ten days time beginning from July 18 to furnish the information sought in the RTI or face aggressive democratic protests.
Some of the information sought by the organization included, what schemes have been received from the central and state governments, the amount of sanctioned schemes received for the years 2010-11 and 2016 17, the modus operandi of executing each and every scheme, whether schemes received were properly utilized etc.