Is any Fee payable for information required to be provided under section 4?

The appellant sought information about the number of personnel sanctioned, vacant and available posts in Municipal Corporation of Delhi and related information. The PIO asked the appellant to deposit Rs. 376/- for providing a copy of Scheduled for the year 2023-24 (Schedule contains a total of 188 pages @ Rs 2 per page). The Respondent submitted that the Appellant has not deposited the additional fee till the date of hearing. The CIC observed that the information sought pertains to sanctioned, filled and vacant posts in MCD, which directly relates to its organizational structure and public appointments. Such information falls within Section 4(1) (b)(i) and (ii) of the RTI Act and is mandatorily required to be disclosed on a suo motu basis by the Public Authority. Hence, the insistence on charging photocopying fees in this case is not justified, as the denial of free access runs contrary to the spirit of proactive disclosure. The CIC noted that the MCD is not complying with the provisions of section 4 (1) (b) of the RTI Act in letter and spirit and counseled that every Public Authority shall make constant endeavour to take steps in accordance with the requirements of Section 4 (1) (b) of the RTI Act to provide as much information suo moto to the public at required intervals through various means of communications, including internet, so that public does not have to resort to the use of RTI Act to obtain basic information. The MCD was advised to expedite updating of information in compliance with provisions of Section 4 of the RTI Act, 2005.

Comments

The question of further fee to be demanded in case of information which is required to be disclosed pro-actively has been categorically dealt in this case. The public authorities should provide the information as required under section 4 on their website.

Citation: Pooja Verma v. Municipal Corporation of Delhi, File No: CIC/MCDND/A/2024/112338; Date of Decision : 11.09.2025

Dr Anuradha Verma (dranuradhaverma@yahoo.co.in) is a RTI Consultant currently working with IIM Vishakhapatnam. She has co-authored the books PIO’s Guide to RTI and Right to Information – Law and Practice. Her weekly article is being published since 2008 on this site. She offers consultancy on RTI matters and third party audit to individuals / organisations. Her other articles can be read at the website of RTI Foundation at the link https://www.rtifoundationofindia.com