Read the passage given below and answer the question that follow
Nannu is a daily wage earner. He lives in Welcome Mazdoor Colony, a slum habitation in East Delhi. He lost his ration card and applied for a duplicate one in January 2004.
He made several rounds to the local Food and Civil Supplies Office for the next 3 months.
But the clerks and officials would not even look at him, leave alone do his job or bother to tell him status of his application.
Ultimately, he filed an application under the Right to Information Act asking for the daily progress made on his application, names of the officials, who were supposed to act on his application and what action would be taken against these officials for their inaction.
Within a week of filing application under the Right to Information Act, he was visited by an inspector from the Food Department, who informed him that the card had been made and he could collect it from the office.
When Nannu went to collect his card next day, he was given a very warm treatment by the Food and Supply Officer (FSO), who is the Head of a Circle. The FSO offered him tea and requested him to withdraw his application under the Right to Information, since his work had already been done.
Whaf does Nannu’s example show? What impact did Nannu’s action have on officials? Ask your parents their experiences when they approach government official to attend to their problems.
Nannu’s example shows the importance of the Right to Information Act.
Nannu made several rounds to the local Food and Civil Supplies Office for a new ration card. But the clerks and officials did not listen to him. When he filed an application under the Right to Information Act, it created a great impact.
Within a week, an official from Food Department visited his house to inform that the card had been made and he could collect it in any working day.
On the next day, when he went to collect the card, he was warmly received by the Food and Supply Officer (FSO). Nannu was requested to withdraw his application under RTI, since he has received his ration card.
My parents had mixed experiences about the government officials when they approached for their problems. Some officers took prompt actions and were very helpful. But in some cases, they faced difficult situation where the officials were very reluctant to do the needful.