CHANDIGARH: The RTI Users Association has appealed Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal to reconsider the decision of appointing yet another information commissioner to the State Information Commission.

“It is shocking for all taxpayers, including RTI activists, that the Punjab State Information Commission, which has only 700 complaints pending before it, and has nine information commissioners and one Chief Information Commissioner, has been burdened with one more information commissioner for rehabilitating a person from a political family despite reservation expressed by one member of the Selection Committee,” states the appeal sent by Advocate HC Arora, convener of the association.

He said the fund-starved government had ignored the fact that the State Information Commission is already work-starved and does not have sufficient work for the existing 10 information commissioners.

“They are idle for three working days every week, and hold sittings only for two hours or so on. In case they start holding sittings every day for six hours like the High Court Judges, there will be absolutely no work left for them in the commission after two months or so,” he wrote.

“In these circumstances, the appointment of another person as SIC is nothing but wastage of taxpayers’ money, and talent, if any, of the persons who are being rehabilitated as state information commissioners with salaries above Rs 1 lakh, luxury cars, palatial kothis and upto 200 litres of petrol expenses,” he wrote. Arora said the full commission had recently observed that the gross emoluments currently being paid to outsourced drivers, data entry operators and peons at the rate of Rs 5,500, Rs 5,000 and Rs 4,000, respectively, needed an upward revision as with these meager salaries, it was difficult to get or retain well-trained staff.

“I may submit that salary and perks to be paid to the additional State Information commissioner, if utilised for revising the salaries being paid to the watchmen, ward staff, peons and date entry operators would be sufficient to give an increase of Rs 3,000 per month to each employee,” he wrote.