THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Keeping up with the times, the State Information Commission has allowed Right to Information (RTI) applicants to take mobile phone photograph of public documents required.
Information seekers can request in their application that they would opt for taking a photograph rather than waiting for the office concerned take a photocopy and send it by post.
The commission is of the view that the decision would be of immense help to the applicants seeking information from offices which do not have a photocopier and those situated in remote areas. Also, the service would become faster. As per the existing rule, the copy of a public document is given to the applicant by charging Rs 2 for an A4-size paper. For documents of other sizes, the actual cost would be levied. “Kerala State Information Commission is the first in the country to bring in this reform. The commission will write to the state government to issue an order to take the message to all RTI officers and the public,” said Somanathan Pillai, Information Commissioner.
However, the new option may not be attractive to applicants who want to produce the copy as an authentic document before some authority. The photocopy would be certified by the information officer.