তথ্য অধিকার আইন

The Daily Star, Friday, March 15, 2024

Shamsul Bari and Ruhi Naz

Office-goers in Dhaka’s Agargaon area were frustrated by a makeshift mini market that had sprung up on the sidewalks outside their buildings, and annoyed by the stench, trash, and blood from the slaughtering of chickens right in front. After several attempts to end the ordeal, an employee of the University Grants Commission (UGC), one of the offices in the neighbourhood, resorted to the Right to Information (RTI) Act. He sent an information request to the Designated Officer (DO) of the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) seeking a copy of the authorisation provided to run the market—and if none was obtained, to know what measures were taken for its eviction.

The next day, the market was gone. A very polite Designated Officer of DNCC called the applicant to reassure him that the closure was permanent. It would have been better, though, if the applicant had insisted on a written reply as that would most likely have led to in-depth discussions on the subject within the DNCC hierarchy Read more