Nagpur: Nagpur Municipal Corporation is struggling with a bizarre situation these days as all its vital documents are crossing the department’s security through a wierd channel! Before you screw up your mind to get into the clue, let us tell you that various key documents are being sent outside the department for getting the true copies of them! The reason is quite quirky – NMC does not have its own photo copy machine in its premises.
Many of us may surprise in awe to learn that most of the RTI replies are being delayed just because the civic body of so called Nagpur metropolitan could not affort to buy a photo copier!!! Ironically, the situation has put many of the key NMC papers and RTI information vulnerable to being leaked or stolen!
There are hundreds of applications especially RTI applications which come to Nagpur Municipal Corporation. These RTI activists send applications with a demand for subject-related documents. The related department or desks then sends a demand note for supplying documents to the applicant. When the applicant makes the payment for the documents demanded, the related department requests for a period of one more week for providing the demanded documents.
The prime reason behind this delay is that there is not a single photo copy machine in Nagpur Municipal Corporation due to which they are not able to photo-copy many important and vital documents. Besides, departmental, Internal or external needs of photo-copying documents are also not met.
Sources claimed that they need to send the vital documents outside the office premises to get them Photo-copied. Often the operator of photo-copying machine takes two days to photo-copy these documents. The documents remain in the shop of the Photo-copy operator.
This makes the vulnerable and sensitive documents of getting misused by unscrupulous elements, stolen by unscrupulous elements for ulterior motives or worst lost.
While speaking to Nagpur Today on condition of anonymity, an official of the Public Works Department said that the very concept of confidentiality is lost when the document is taken outside the office premises. He added that the peons and office-boys who take the document outside could always be bribed and the documents misused.
The risks that are involved and the accountability has to looked into the by the authorities of NMC.
1. Who will be held accountable for documents getting misused, stolen, lost?
2. When the civic authorities spend crores of rupees for so many civic activities, can’t they spend a small amount for Heavy Duty Xerox machine (as per requirement)?
– Rajeev Ranjan Kushwaha ( rajeev.nagpurtoday@gmail.com )
