The Haryana Government has allocated a significant budget of Rs 113.42 crore to the State Information Commission (SIC) over the past two decades, yet a mere Rs 2.49 lakh has been directed towards promoting awareness of the Right to Information (RTI) Act within the state. Alarmingly, no funds have been spent on RTI awareness campaigns in the last 15 years.
RTI Implementation and Expenditure Details
The state government implemented the RTI Act on October 12, 2005. Since then, the bulk of the expenditure—Rs 113.42 crore—has been utilized for salaries of state information commissioners and SIC staff. This information was disclosed in response to an RTI application filed by activist PP Kapoor from Samalkha.
According to the RTI reply, the SIC functioned from two rented buildings in Chandigarh from October 2005 until December 2024. The commission moved to its own building in Sector 3, Panchkula, on December 16, 2024. The construction and acquisition of this building cost Rs 47.63 crore, which includes Rs 9.30 crore for land purchase and Rs 38.83 crore for construction. Additionally, Rs 79.52 lakh was spent on electricity bills, and Rs 13.62 lakh on office decoration.
Vacant Posts and Building Compliance Issues
Currently, five positions of state information commissioner remain unfilled. Kapoor highlighted that the four-story building has been fully operational for 18 months without a valid occupation certificate or fire safety certificate, which are mandatory under the Haryana Building Code, 2017.
The SIC reported receiving a total of 1,13,897 second appeals and 12,629 complaints over the past 20 years. Of these, 1,08,288 second appeals and 11,186 complaints have been resolved. Pending cases include 5,609 second appeals and 1,443 complaints.
Penalties and Recovery
Between 2021 and 2025, the commission imposed penalties totaling Rs 1.79 crore on defaulting state public information officers (SPIOs), of which only Rs 64.55 lakh has been recovered. The commission has also published a list of 1,863 defaulting SPIOs on its website, with an outstanding penalty amount of Rs 2.94 crore yet to be recovered.
Kapoor criticized the state government for spending crores on commissioners and staff while neglecting RTI awareness, noting that many SPIOs fail to provide information under the Act. He argued that the lavish spending on salaries indicates the commission has become a haven for retired bureaucrats and government favorites. He demanded that the building, operating without an occupation certificate, be sealed and that the five vacant commissioner posts be filled immediately.
