KATHMANDU, Sept 27: Stakeholders have said that the practice of seeking information from public agencies is still poor in Nepal even a decade after the enactment of the Right to Information (RTI) Act. 

Speaking at an interaction program on a decade of RTI Act in Nepal organized by Freedom Forum in Kathmandu on Tuesday, Chief Commissioner of the National Information Commission Krishna Hari Baskota said that the practice of citizens seeking information from public bodies is still not encouraging. 

“If any public agency declines to provide the information sought by a citizen adopting legal procedure, the commission will take action against them whatever the position he/she is in,” said Baskota. He further said that the commission is focusing on taking action against officers who deny providing the public with information to the citizens. 

Commissioner of National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Sudip Pathak said that the commission has received just a single application of RTI.

Civil Society member Bishnu Kumar Shrestha, Professor Dr Ram Krishna Timilsina and chairman of the Freedom Forum Taranath Dahal also said that the political transition has posed challenges in the implementation of the RTI Act.

 
• stakeholders
 
• right to information (rti) act
 
• civil society member bishnu kumar shrestha
 
• professor dr ram krishna timilsina
 
• chairman of the freedom forum taranath dahal