Among the small states category, Nagaland recorded the highest number of RTI applications received.
Nagaland received as many as 24, 896 RTI applications from 2006-07 to 2016-17.
This was stated in the Annual Administrative Report (2018-2019) of the State’s Department of Personnel & Administrative Reforms (DP&AR) tabled in the recently concluded state Assembly session.
The Nagaland Information Commission has analysed the RTI applications received by the various public authorities in the state for the first time for the period 2015-16 and 2016-17, which was perhaps the first Information Commission in the country to have undertaken such analysis, according to reports.
The report stated that the Commission had continued with the analysis of the RTI request or applications received by the various public authorities in the state for the period 2017-18.
It showed that there has been decline in the number of RTI applications or requests received by the various public authorities in the state during the last three years from 2015-16 to 2017-18.
“This decline can be safely attributed due to increase in the level of transparency in the state as per the above analysis of proactive disclosures carried out by the Commission,” it noted.
Like in the previous years, the report stated that the most sought-after information during 2017-18 were financial matters such as funds released, sanction orders, actual payee receipts, utilization certificates etc followed by schemes related queries.
“With the high rate of unemployment in the state, queries like appointment orders, incumbency lists, retirement lists, examination results, verification of mark sheets, admit cards, degree & diploma certificates etc, were sought,” the report added.
Besides, verification of documents such as driving licences and arms licences were also sought mostly in the district level, the report further stated.