Skip to main content

Ministries, departments refusing to disclose monthly performance reports

By Venkatesh Nayak*
India’s Right to Information Act turns 12 today (12th October). This is an appropriate moment to test compliance with a June 2016 directive of the Cabinet Secretariat requiring all Ministries and Departments of the Central Government to publish their performance reports on their official website, every month. Our quick survey of the official websites shows, more than 92% of the Central Ministries and more than 82% of the Central Departments have not displayed their monthly performance reports as required by this directive.

Background to the Cabinet Secretariat’s transparency directive

Under Rule 10 of the Rules of Procedure in Regard to Proceedings of the Cabinet, 1987, every ministry and department is required to send a report of the work done every month, to the Council of Ministers. These reports are required to be submitted through the Cabinet Secretariat by the 10th of the next month. Such a monthly report may have a classified portion (labelled “top secret” or “secret” or “confidential”) containing ‘sensitive matters’ and an unclassified portion. With the exception of the Ministry of Coal, no other ministry or department proactively publishes any part of these monthly summaries prepared under Rule 10.
Since 2014, I have been using the RTI Act to make these monthly reports accessible us all. A brief history of these efforts is available in the public domain. During my 2nd round of RTI interventions in 2015, to make these monthly reports public, the Cabinet Secretariat refused to do so under Section 7(9) of the RTI Act holding that it would divert its resources disproportionately. Readers will remember that Section 7(9) cannot be invoked for rejecting an RTI application. According to Section 7(1) of the RTI Act, access to information may be denied only under one or more of the permissible exemptions under Sections 8 and 9 of the Act. No other reason is valid.
When this matter escalated to the Central Information Commission, the Commission issued a recommendation to the Cabinet Secretariat in April 2016 to consider the possibility of proactively disclosing the “unclassified” portions of the monthly reports on their websites. In its decision, the CIC also advised the Cab. Sectt. to put in place a mechanism for monitoring compliance of ministries and departments with their reporting obligations under Rule 10.
Acting swiftly, in June 2016, the Cabinet Secretariat issued a circular to all ministries and departments requiring them to do the following:
“In order to ensure greater transparency and availability of information in public domain about the activities of the Ministries/Departments, it has been decided that henceforth, all Ministries/Departments may upload, on a monthly basis, the major achievements, significant developments and important events for the month in respect of their Ministry/Department, on their official websites.”

Status of compliance with the Cabinet Secretariat’s transparency directive

After allowing a whole quarter (3 months) for the ministries and departments to put in place systems for publishing the required monthly reports, we checked their websites for compliance. We find that compliance with this directive across the Government is poor.
Ministries that have published their monthly reports:
1) Ministry of Home Affairs: http://mha.nic.in/MHAMajorAchievements (June – August 2016)
2) Ministry of Medium Small and Micro Enterprises: http://www.msme.gov.in/mob/ArchivesNews.aspx (June – August 2016)
3) Ministry of Rural Development: http://rural.nic.in/netrural/rural/sites/Monthly_Achievements.aspx (June – July 2016)
4) Ministry of Textiles: http://www.ministryoftextiles.gov.in/documents/monthly-major-activities (August 2016 only)
Departments that have published their monthly reports:
1) Department of Personnel and Training (nodal department for implementing the RTI Act): http://ccis.nic.in/WriteReadData/CircularPortal/D2/D02adm/Monthly_DO_August_2016.pdf (currently available for August 2016 only)
2) Dept. of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances: http://darpg.gov.in/relatedlinks/monthly-major-achievements(June 2016 only)
3) Dept. of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries: http://dadf.gov.in/division/achievements-0 (common report for August and September 2016)
4) Dept. of Health and Family Welfare: http://mohfw.gov.in/index1.php?lang=1&level=1&sublinkid=6202&lid=4040 (April – July 2016)
5) Dept. of Industrial Policy and Promotions: http://dipp.gov.in/English/AboutUs/achievements/MajorAchievements_AprilJuly2016_23August2016.pdf (April – July 2016)
6) Dept. of Investment and Public Investment Management : http://dipam.gov.in/Major_Achievement.asp (2 bullet points of achievements for August 2016)
7) Dept. of Public Enterprises : http://dpe.nic.in/sites/upload_files/dpe/files/MONTHLY_ACHIEVEMENTS_SEPTEMBER.pdf (covers August and September 2016)
8) Dept. of Social Justice and Empowerment: http://socialjustice.gov.in/writereaddata/UploadFile/ACHIEVEMENT-JULY%202016.pdf (July 2016 only)
Our research shows, only 7.6% (4 out of 52) of the Central Ministries and 17.4% (8 out of 46) of the Central Departments have complied with this directive. Even where there is compliance, all reports due since the date of the Cabinet Secretariat’s circular are not uploaded on their website. We checked not only the homepage of every website, but also the “Sitemap” and the sections on “Media/Press”, “RTI” and “Citizen” on each website to ascertain the status of compliance.
Other performance reports:
During our survey, we came across other kinds of progress reports. The Central Government publishes a Fortnightly report of the NDA Government. In addition to this report, several Ministries and Departments have uploaded other kinds of performance reports. Apart from the regular publication of annual reports which are tabled in Parliament in relation to the discussion on the demand for grants presented in the annual budget, some have published e-books or two-years reports on their official websites. A few others publish fortnightly and weekly reports.
A sampler of these reports is given below:

Standardising the reporting format and periodicity

While the efforts made by the Ministries and departments to inform the public about the progress of their work must be appreciated, there is a need for standardising the format and the periodicity of these reports. To start with, it is advisable to publish on the websites, the “unclassified” portions of the monthly reports submitted to the Council of Ministers through the Cabinet Secretariat under Rule 10 of the Rules of Procedure in Regard to the Proceedings of Cabinet. This will reduce the burden on the ministries and departments of preparing a separate report to comply with the Cabinet Secretariat’s Directive. If the Ministry of Coal can publish the unclassified portion of their monthly reports soon after sending them to the Cabinet Secretariat, there is no reason why other ministries and departments cannot do the same.

Rule 10 reports of the Ministry of External Affairs- RTIed

Recently, I obtained copies of the monthly reports prepared by the Ministry of External Affairs under Rule 10 for the period, June 2015 – January 2016. Readers will realise how much more comprehensive Rule 10 reports are in comparison with the monthly reports that are being published under the Cabinet Secretariat’s recent directive at the links cited above. This is one of the reasons why it is important to publish the Rule 10 reports. Experts and foreign affairs analysts may find these reports useful in their work.
Second, the Central Government and all State Governments have a statutory obligation under Section 26(1)(c) of the RTI Act to require all public authorities under their jurisdiction to disseminate accurate information about their activities in a timely and effective manner. Section 23(1)(c) of the Jammu and Kashmir RTI Act, 2009 places a similar obligation of disclosure on the Government in J&K. However, compliance with these provisions is poor. A good way of ensuring compliance with this statutory requirement is to publish the Rule 10 reports every month.
Perhaps a beginning can be made by encouraging the Central Ministries and departments to comply with these provisions and other public authorities that have websites may follow this practice later on. Regular reporting in this manner has the potential of reducing the number of RTI applications that are submitted to public authorities and achieving one of the primary objectives of the RTI Act, namely, reducing people’s need to make formal requests for information [Section 4(2)]. RTI users and activists might like to find out the reporting requirements in their States and advocate to align them in accordance with the statutory obligations under the RTI laws.
—
*Programme Coordinator, Access to Information Programme, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, New Delhi

Comments

Post a Comment

TRENDING

Gujarat Information Commission issues warning against misinterpretation of RTI orders

By A Representative   The Gujarat Information Commission (GIC) has issued a press note clarifying that its orders limiting the number of Right to Information (RTI) applications for certain individuals apply only to those specific applicants. The GIC has warned that it will take disciplinary action against any public officials who misinterpret these orders to deny information to other citizens. The press note, signed by GIC Secretary Jaideep Dwivedi, states that the Right to Information Act, 2005, is a powerful tool for promoting transparency and accountability in public administration. However, the commission has observed that some applicants are misusing the act by filing an excessive number of applications, which disproportionately consumes the time and resources of Public Information Officers (PIOs), First Appellate Authorities (FAAs), and the commission itself. This misuse can cause delays for genuine applicants seeking justice. In response to this issue, and in acc...
2 comments
»

Targeted eviction of Bengali-speaking Muslims across Assam districts alleged

By A Representative   A delegation led by prominent academic and civil rights leader Sandeep Pandey  visited three districts in Assam—Goalpara, Dhubri, and Lakhimpur—between 2 and 4 September 2025 to meet families affected by recent demolitions and evictions. The delegation reported widespread displacement of Bengali-speaking Muslim communities, many of whom possess valid citizenship documents including Aadhaar, voter ID, ration cards, PAN cards, and NRC certification. 
Post a Comment
»

'Govts must walk the talk on gender equality, right to health, human rights to deliver SDGs by 2030'

By A Representative  With just 64 months left to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), global health and rights advocates have called upon governments to honour their commitments on gender equality and the human right to health. Speaking ahead of the 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), experts warned that rising anti-rights and anti-gender pushes are threatening hard-won progress on SDG-3 (health and wellbeing) and SDG-5 (gender equality).
Post a Comment
»

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor*  This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.
Post a Comment
»

Is U.S. fast losing its financial and technological edge under Trump’s second tenure?

By Dr. Manoj Kumar Mishra*  The United States, along with its Western European allies, once promoted globalization as a democratic force that would deliver shared prosperity and balanced growth. That promise has unraveled. Globalization, instead of building an even world, has produced one defined by inequality, asymmetry of power, and new vulnerabilities. For decades, Washington successfully turned this system to its advantage. Today, however, under Trump’s second administration, America is attempting to exploit the weaknesses of others without acknowledging how exposed it has become itself.
Post a Comment
»

Gandhiji quoted as saying his anti-untouchability view has little space for inter-dining with "lower" castes

By A Representative A senior activist close to Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) leader Medha Patkar has defended top Booker prize winning novelist Arundhati Roy’s controversial utterance on Gandhiji that “his doctrine of nonviolence was based on an acceptance of the most brutal social hierarchy the world has ever known, the caste system.” Surprised at the police seeking video footage and transcript of Roy’s Mahatma Ayyankali memorial lecture at the Kerala University on July 17, Nandini K Oza in a recent blog quotes from available sources to “prove” that Gandhiji indeed believed in “removal of untouchability within the caste system.”
Post a Comment
»

'MGNREGA crisis deepening': NSM demands fair wages and end to digital exclusions

By A Representative   The NREGA Sangharsh Morcha (NSM), a coalition of independent unions of MGNREGA workers, has warned that the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) is facing a “severe crisis” due to persistent neglect and restrictive measures imposed by the Union Government.
Post a Comment
»

On Teachers’ Day, remembering Mother Teresa as the teacher of compassion

By Fr. Cedric Prakash SJ   It is Teachers’ Day once again! Significantly, the day also marks the Feast of St. Teresa of Calcutta (still lovingly called Mother Teresa). In 2012, the United Nations, as a fitting tribute to her, declared this day the International Day of Charity. A day pregnant with meaning—one that we must celebrate as meaningfully as possible.
Post a Comment
»

Gujarat minority rights group seeks suspension of Botad police officials for brutal assault on minor

By A Representative   A human rights group, the Minority Coordination Committee (MCC) Gujarat,  has written to the Director General of Police (DGP), Gandhinagar, demanding the immediate suspension and criminal action against police personnel of Botad police station for allegedly brutally assaulting a minor boy from the Muslim community.
Post a Comment
»