Right to Information
Government of India has enacted the Right to Information Act, 2005 and published in Extraordinary Gazette Part-II, Sec. I dated 21.06.2005.
Under the Right to Information Act, 2005, the Senior Deputy Accountant General in charge of the Administration Group is the nominated Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) and the Principal Accountant General is the First Appellate Authority (FAA) for Office of the Principal Accountant General (Audit-II) Gujarat, Ahmedabad.
Guidelines for Information Seekers
- A citizen, who desires to obtain any information under the Act, should make an application to the Public Information Officer in writing in English or Hindi or in the official language of the area in which the application is made. The application should be precise and specific. He/She should make payment of application fee at the time of submitting the application as prescribed under RTI Rules. The applicant can send the application by post or through electronic means or can deliver it personally in the office of the Public Authority.
- The applicant should not list out his grievances in the RTI application, but should clearly mention the exact information that he/she would like to seek. Further, if the drafting of the application is such that it pinpoints the specific documents required in relation to the information sought, there would be less scope for ambiguity.
Fee for Seeking Information
In terms of the Right to Information (Regulation of Fee and Cost) Rules, 2005, as amended from time to time, the following is the fee chargeable for seeking information.
1. Application Fee:
- A request for obtaining information under sub-section (1) of Section 6 of the RTI Act,2005, shall be accompanied by an application fee of Rupees 10/- by way of cash against proper receipt or Demand Draft or a Banker’s Cheque or an Indian Postal Order payable to the Accounts Officer of the Public Authority. The payment of fee can also be made by way of cash to the Public Authority.
- In respect of the Office of the Principal Accountant General (Audit-II) Gujarat, Ahmedabad, the fee can be paid by way of cash against proper receipt or by way of Demand Draft or Banker’s Cheque or Indian Postal Order payable to the ‘Pay and Accounts Officer, Indian Audit Department, Ahmedabad’.
2. Further Fees for Providing Information:
A fee shall be charged by way of cash against proper receipt or by Demand Draft or Banker’s Cheque payable to the Accounts Officer of the Public Authority, at the following rates, for providing information under sub-section (1) of Section 7 of the RTI Act, 2005.
- Rupees two for each page (in A-4 or A-3 size paper) created or copied.
- Actual charge or Cost Price of a copy in larger size paper.
- Actual cost or price for samples or models; and
- For inspection of records, no fee for the first hour and a fee of Rs.5/- for each subsequent hour (or fraction thereof).
In respect of the Office of the Principal Accountant General (Audit-II) Gujarat, Ahmedabad, the DD or Banker’s cheque or IPO should be drawn in favor of the ‘Pay and Accounts Officer/ Indian Audit Department’, Ahmedabad.
Appeals:
An applicant can file an appeal to the First Appellate Authority if the information is not supplied to him in the prescribed time of 30 days or 48 Hrs, as the case may be, or is not satisfied with the information furnished to him. Such an appeal should be filed within 30 days from the date on which the limit of 30 days of supply of information has expired or from the date on which the information or decision of the Public Information Officer is received. The First Appellate Authority shall dispose of the appeal within a period of 30 days or in exceptional cases within 45 days of receipt of an appeal.
The First Appeal has to be addressed to the Appellate Authority i.e. Principal Accountant General (AUDIT-II), Gujarat, Ahmedabad.
If the First Appellate Authority fails to pass an order on the appeal within the prescribed period or if the appellant is not satisfied with the order of the First Appellate Authority, he may prefer a second appeal with the Central Information Commission, Baba Gangnath Marg, Munirka, New Delhi-110 067, under Section 19(3) of the RTI Act, 2005, within ninety days from the date on which the decision should have been made by the Appellate Authority or was actually received by the appellant. While preferring appeals before the Central Information Commission, the appellant should forward a copy of the second appeal to the CPIO and First Appellate Authority.
The Office of the Principal Accountant General (Audit-II) Gujarat, Ahmedabad, consists of the following wings:
Administration
This wing deals with the matters relating to appointment, promotion, financial upgradation, APAR, training, departmental examinations, retirement, pension, deputation, transfer & posting, personal cases, court cases, disciplinary cases, staff association matters, pay fixation, payment of pay & allowances, reimbursement of various claims, estate management, inventory management, management of IT systems and Rajbhasha related matters.
AMG-I:
Audit Management Group-I deals with the Audit of State Government Departments and offices which fall under the purview of:
- Industry & Commerce
- Public Works
AMG-II:
Audit Management Group-II deals with the Audit of State Government departments and offices; which come under the purview of:
- Transport
- Environment, Science and Technology
- IT and Communication
- Law and Order
- General Administration
AMG-III:
Audit Management Group-III deals with the Audit of State Government departments and offices which come under the purview of:
- Energy and Power
- Finance
Guidelines issued by the Government of India vide Office Memorandum No. 1/6/2011-IR dated 15.04.2013 of the Department of Personnel & Training regarding implementation of suo motu disclosure under Section 4 of RTI Act, 2005 are applicable to Office of the Principal Accountant General (Audit-II) Gujarat, Ahmedabad.