UNIT V: SOCIAL MOVEMENTS AND SOCIAL CHANGE

RIGHT TO INFORMATION ACT RTI (2005)

What is RTI Act?

 It is an Act of the parliament of India.
 The Act applies to the whole of India.
 It provides a legal framework of citizens’ democratic right to access to information under the
control of public authorities
 To promote transparency and accountability in the functioning of every public authority
 “An Act to provide for setting out the practical regime of Right to Information for citizens to
secure access to information under the control of public authorities, in order to promote
transparency and accountability in the working of every public authority, the constitution of
a Central Information Commission and State Information Commissions and for matters
connected therewith or incidental thereto.”

What does ‘information’ mean ?

Records Documents Memos Opinions & advices Press releases Circulars, orders & logbooks
Contracts Reports, papers, samples & models.

Need for RTI Act

– Promote openness,
– Transparency and accountability in the working of every public authority.
– Reduce Corruption
– Prevent administrative arbitrariness
– Bride the gap between providers and recipient of public services
– Make citizens part of decision making
– Make administrative responsive
– Strengthen the foundations of democracy

Procedure for requesting information

Apply in writing or through electronic means in English or Hindi or in the official language of the
area, to the Public Information Officer [PIO], specifying the particulars of the information sought for.
Reason for seeking information are not required to be given;
Pay fees as may be prescribed.

FEES AND CHARGES

 Processing expenses incurred by the Public Information officer to be intimated in writing.
 Applicant can seek review of the decision on fees charged by the PIO by applying to the
appropriate Appellate Authority;
 No fees from people living below the poverty line.
 Free of cost if the PIO fails to comply within the time limit as prescribed under the RTI Act.

 5.1.7 Time limits to get the information

 30 days if application is filed with the PIO.
 35 days in case it is filed with the Assistant PIO.
 48 hours in case the matter to which the information pertains affects the life and liberty of
an individual.

Coverage
RTI Act came into effect on 12th October 2005.
Covers central, state and local governments and all bodies owned, controlled or substantially
financed by the respective Governments
Section 2(h) Non-government organization substantially financed directly or indirectly by funds
provided by the appropriate government.
Section 2 (e) Executive, judiciary and legislature Includes information relating to private body which
can be accessed by under any other law for the time being in force. Section 2 (f)

EXEMPTIONS FROM DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION

National security (b) Contempt of court (c) Parliamentary privilege (d) Trade secrecy (e) Fiduciary
relationship (f) Foreign government (g) Safety of informer in law enforcement (h) Investigation (i)
Cabinet papers (j) Privacy (K) Copyright - disclosure which would involve an infringement of
copyright subsisting in a person other than the State may be rejected. [Section 9]

Appeal
 First appeal with senior in the Department.
 Second appeal with Information Commission.
 Envisages an independent Information Commission at the central and state level to be an
appellate authority and to oversee the functioning of the Act.
 Has various powers under the RTI Act.
 5.1.11 Penalties
 The penalty levied under the RTI Act at the rate of Rs. 250/- a day, up to a maximum of Rs.
25,000/-, is recovered from the salary of officials.

RTI Amendment Act 2019

The amendments made under the original RTI act 2005 through the RTI amendment bill, 2019 are
quite alarming and have adverse effects on the independence and the autonomy of the
information commission. As the Central Government becomes the major authority to look after
the appointment, salaries, and the serving tenures of information and chief information
commissioners. Then it completely retards the transparency in the system and leaves no
autonomy or independence left behind for the information commission. As the major decision in
the information commission will be taken by the central Government then the information
commission remains no more an independent body.

GRASSROOTS COMMUNICATION FOR EDUCATION

What is grassroots communication?

This is communication strategies developed for mobilization and sensitization in
the grassroots (localities often viewed as the rural and agricultural zones of a country). Grassroots is
equally used to refer to the totality of people living in the rural areas of a country, as a socio-
economic or political force. Viewed from this angle, grassroots communication is seen as emanating
from rural communities and aiming at advocating specific issues.

Media and communication constitute indispensable components of participatory processes and

strategies. If development is to have relevance and positive outcomes for the people and
communities who need it most, it must involve stakeholders who experience the greatest inequality,
deprivation, and marginalization, that is, those who live in remote rural areas, urban slums, and
other depressed sectors of many societies. People living in such peripheries must perceive their real
needs, identify their real problems, and should be included in all directed change programs and
activities. The idea of self-development, which was popularized in the 1970s, provides instructive
lessons for the role of media and communication in genuinely participatory activities (Havelock,
1971). In self-development approaches, the emphasis was on bottom-up communication flows from
local communities to experts and other sources, and horizontal communication flows between
people. Local people were required to have open discussions, identify their needs and problems,
decide on a plan of action, and then use a specific medium of communication and an information
database most appropriate to their needs.
true participatory approaches call for the active engagement of all stakeholders in the construction
of the agenda and all facets of the decision-making process.

The government is implementing several programs in rural areas through the state Govt. and other
change agencies for health issues, education and awareness for social issues etc. The grass-root
communication for development approaches rural people where they are at the centre of any given
development initiative. In rural areas, there are many formal communication channels through
which the change agents work for people. Apart from the formal channels, there are also certain
informal channels of communications through which the rural people get or collect information. The
communication bridges built between public institutions, rural organizations and people generate
the opportunities to ensure share of knowledge and experience needed for rural development and
rural development is a process of action with economic, political, cultural and social dimensions.

Radio and Television have been acclaimed to be the most effective media for diffusing the scientific
knowledge to the masses. In countries like India, where literacy level is low, the choice of
communication media is of vital importance, particularly Electronic Media. The Television and Radio
are significant, as they transfer modern agricultural technology to literate and illiterate farmers and
peasants alike even in interior areas, within short period of time. With the main stream of Indian
population engaged actively in agriculture, television could serve as a suitable medium of
dissemination of farm information and latest technical know – how. Kuthiala (1980) points out the
major role that can be played by radio in the different areas of rural development, namely,
agriculture, family planning, non-formal education, formal education, industrial planning and
control, national integration and international co-operation.

Prasad (2005) in his book “Media and social life in India”, described the world of technological
modernization, mass media, which includes electronic and print media, is deeply embedded in the
society. The purpose of the media is to spread awareness and let the general public know what is
happening around them. Because of its global network, the media brings to the public the
immediacy of what is happening within and outside the national frontiers. The advertisements in
various private television channels during different times of the day are telecast to address the
various issues around the HIV/AIDS. These mass media programs are aimed to convey message
sensitively.

For case study refer to the presentation on Barefoot College.

WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

Empowerment: Process by which individuals, organisations and communities gain control and
mastery over social and economic conditions, over democratic participation in their communities
and over their stories.
Dimensions
1. Personal empowerment – Developing individual consciousness and confidence to confront
oppression.
2. Relational empowerment – Increased ability to negotiate and influence relational decisions.
3. Collective empowerment – collective action at the local or higher level to change oppressive
structures.
The empowerment and autonomy of women and the improvement of their political, social,
economic and health status is a highly important end in itself. In addition, it is essential for the
achievement of sustainable development. The full participation and partnership of both women and
men is required in productive and reproductive life, including shared responsibilities for the care and
nurturing of children and maintenance of the household. In all parts of the world, women are facing
threats to their lives, health and well- being as a result of being overburdened with work and of their
lack of power and influence. In most regions of the world, women receive less formal education than
men, and at the same time, women's own knowledge, abilities and coping mechanisms often go
unrecognized.
The power relations that impede women's attainment of healthy and fulfilling lives operate at many
levels of society, from the most personal to the highly public. Achieving change requires policy and
programme actions that will improve women's access to secure livelihoods and economic resources,
alleviate their extreme responsibilities with regard to housework, remove legal impediments to their
participation in public life, and raise social awareness through effective programmes of education
and mass communication. In addition, improving the status of women also enhances their decision-
making capacity at all levels in all spheres of life, especially in the area of sexuality and reproduction.
This, in turn, is essential for the long- term success of population programmes. Experience shows
that population and development programmes are most effective when steps have simultaneously
been taken to improve the status of women.

Education is one of the most important means of empowering women with the knowledge, skills and
self-confidence necessary to participate fully in the development process.

Countries should act to empower women and should take steps to eliminate inequalities between
men and women as soon as possible by:
(a) Establishing mechanisms for women's equal participation and equitable representation at all
levels of the political process and public life in each community and society and enabling women to
articulate their concerns and needs;
(b) Promoting the fulfilment of women's potential through education, skill development and
employment, giving paramount importance to the elimination of poverty, illiteracy and ill health
among women;
(c) Eliminating all practices that discriminate against women; assisting women to establish and
realize their rights, including those that relate to reproductive and sexual health;
(d) Adopting appropriate measures to improve women's ability to earn income beyond traditional
occupations, achieve economic self-reliance, and ensure women's equal access to the labour market
and social security systems;
(e) Eliminating violence against women;
(f) Eliminating discriminatory practices by employers against women, such as those based on proof
of contraceptive use or pregnancy status;
(g) Making it possible, through laws, regulations and other appropriate measures, for women to
combine the roles of child-bearing, breast-feeding and child-rearing with participation in the
workforce.