A couple of elevation and transfer of High Court Chief Justices are to be cleared in the next meeting of the SC Collegium.

As per available indications about half a dozen IIS officers are likely to be promoted as DG. Their names have reportedly been sent for DPC, which is likely to be held on February 14. These officers belong to the 1991 batch.

Vejendla Srinivas Chakravarthy, Director (Commercial), SAIL, appears to be eligible for the post of Chairman, Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL).

Manjit Singh Saini, GM, SCI, has been selected for the post of Director (P&A), Shipping Corporation of India Limited (SCI) at a Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) meeting held on February 2, 2023. Only two candidates appeared for interviews.

Pranab Kumar Das, ACIT, Mumbai, has resigned from the Indian Revenue Service of Income Tax cadre.

Who will be new State Election Commissioner in Punjab?  Tie is reportedly between 1989 batch IAS officer Kripa Shankar Saroj and 1996 batch IAS officer Raj Kamal Chaudhuri.

Anurag Agrawal has been appointed as IG, CRPF on deputation basis for a period of five years. He is a 1998 batch IPS officer of Assam Meghalaya cadre.

Sandeep Khirwar has been appointed as IG, CRPF on deputation basis for a period of five years. He is a 1995 batch IPS officer of Haryana cadre.

Sandeep Kumar has been appointed as Director of Investigation Division of CBDT in the Department of Revenue on deputation basis. He is an IRS-IT officer.

Anil Jerath, Director (Finance), BEML, appears to be one of the Board level claimants for the post of Chairman-cum-Managing Director, BEML Limited.

Tenure of former TRAI Chairman Ram Sewak Sharma as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Health Authority (NHA) has ended. He is a former 1978 batch IAS officer of Jharkhand cadre.

The Government of India is yet to advertise a vacancy of Chairman-cum-Managing Director, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDSL).

M Subbarayudu, presently Ambassador of India to the Republic of Peru, has been appointed as the next High Commissioner of India to the Republic of Namibia. He is a 1994 batch IFS officer.

Prashant Agrawal, presently High Commissioner of India to the Republic of Namibia has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Lao People's Democratic Republic. He is a 1998 batch IFS officer.

The post of Praveen has been upgraded as Director in the Department of Space. He is a 2009 batch IRS-IT officer.

Five IAS officers of 2007 batch in Chhattisgarh have been promoted to the Secretary grade. The officers are: Shammi Abidi, Basav Raju S, Himshikhar Gupta, Muhammed Qaiser Abdul Haque and Yashwant Kumar.

Six IAS officers of 2019 batch in Chhattisgarh have been promoted to the Senior Time Scale of IAS. They are: Ms Namrata Jain. Ms Rena Jameel, Lalitaditya Neelam, Vishwadeep, Jitender Yadav and Amit Kumar.

Of the three panels set up by the Centre to take up user complaints against social media platforms, the second Grievance Appellate Committee (GAC) will be chaired by the Joint Secretary In Charge of the Policy and Administration Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB). Sunil Kumar Gupta, former Indian Navy Commodore and Kavindra Sharma, former vice-president (consulting) of L&T Infotech, will be the whole-time members of this panel.

Three Assistant Commissioners have taken VRS from the IRS(C&IT). They are: Mrs Jyoti S Chitgupi, Dinesh M Prithiani and Yuvaraj Arjunam.

Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDSL) is reported not to have received any order during the last three years.

Karmayogi Bharat, Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) set-up by Department of Personnel and Training as a 100 percent Government owned Company under National Programme for Civil Services Capacity Building — Mission Karmayogi —  seeks to appoint Advisor Communication and has sought applications by February 15.

V K Tiwari has been appointed as Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Head of Forest Force), Himachal Pradesh. He is a 1986 batch IFS officer of HP cadre.

Former IAS officer Ashok Kumar Barman, who superannuated on January 31, is re-engaged as Special Secretary to the Government of Assam in the Implementation of Assam Accord Department. He is also posted as Secretary, Revenue & DM Department and Member Secretary to the Commission for Review & Assessment of Problems of Satra Lands in Assam (CRAPSLA).

Two IAS officers have been given new assignments in Gujarat. Milind Torawane is appointed as Commissioner, Rural Development and Secretary to Government, Rural Development, Panchayats, Rural Housing and Rural Development Department, while Manoj Kumar Das, ACS, Ports & Transport Department, would hold additional charge of ACS, Panchayats, Rural Housing and Rural Development.

Samir Vakil, Special Commissioner of State Tax, Ahmedabad would hold additional charge of the post of Chief Commissioner of State Tax, Ahmedabad, Gujarat. He is an IRS officer.

Major General H Dharmarajan has taken over thc charge of General Officer Commanding (GOC), Bengal Sub Area.

Ms Sanskriti Jain has been appointed as Commissioner, Rewa Municipal Corporation and Mrinal Meena was made Additional Collector, Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh.

Former IAS officer Ashok Kumar Barman, who superauunated on January 31, is re-engaged as Special Secretary to the Government of Assam in the Implementation of Assam Accord Department. He is also posted as Secretary, Revenue & DM Department and Member Secretary to the Commission for Review & Assessment of Problems of Satra Lands in Assam (CRAPSLA).

In the ordinary course of business, LIC does not share details of its company and industrial group specific investments. However, given that certain information is being circulated in the various articles in media and Video Channels about LIC's exposure to Adani Group of companies, we are releasing this information to share the factual position regarding our exposure in Adani group of companies in the equity and debt segments. LIC's total holding under equity and debt is Rs. 35,917.31 Crores as on December 31, 2022 under Adani group of companies. The total purchase value of equity, purchased over the last many years, under all the Adani group companies is Rs. 30,127 Crores and the market value for the same as at close of market hours on January 27, 2023 was Rs.56,142 Crores. The total amount invested under Adani Group amounts to Rs. 36,474.78 Crores as on date. These investments have however been made over a period. Further it may be appreciated that the credit rating of all of the Adani debt securities held by LIC are AA and above which is in compliance with the IRDAI investment regulations as applicable to all the Life Insurance companies. The total Assets Under Management by LIC are over Rs. 41.66 lakh crore as at September 30, 2022. Therefore, LIC's exposure in the Adani group, as on date, is 0.975% of LIC's Total AUM at book value. LIC is a 66 year old institution of repute and standing and continues to follow strict investment framework compliant with applicable guidelines and regulations. It is also important to note that while the market value of assets can change in either direction, LIC invests from a long term perspective and based on detailed due diligence. LIC follows a robust procedure for valuation of its liabilities and determination of solvency margin in order to ensure its financial soundness on continued basis. The available solvency margin of LIC as at September 2022 was well above the target solvency level of 160%. LIC Board and its management are committed to and conscious of its responsibilities towards all the stakeholders and will continue to follow appropriate principles and practices to safeguard their interests at all the times.

Sandeep Kumar, Director (Finance), Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), has been entrusted with the additional charge of the post of Director (Personnel), RVNL, for a period of three months. He is an Indian Railway Accounts Service (IRAS) officer.

Vipin Kumar – who is presently working as Senior Deputy General Manager (SDGM) in Eastern Railway (ER) – has been transferred to South Eastern Railway (SER) and posted as Chief Project Director (CPD), SD. He is an Indian Railway Service of Engineers (IRSE) officer.

Former Chhattisgarh Chief secretary Vivek Dhand has been appointed Chairman, Chhattisgarh State Innovation Commission. He is a former 1981 batch IAS officer.

Ashishkumar Chauhan, MD & CEO, NSE, has expressed his views to the Union Budget tabled by the Government of India. He said, “This is a growth-oriented budget, one of the best in years, with a focus on both infrastructure and job creation, while reducing income tax for pretty much everyone, and lots of money to states. The fiscal deficit has been reduced from 6.4% to 5.9% of GDP, with a clear path to reach 4.5% in next three years. The focus on infrastructure, as seen in the rising capex outlay from Rs7.5lakh crore to Rs10 lakh crore, combined with PM Gati Shakti and this Government's ability to execute, would be visible through roads, railways, ports and airports and would translate into demand for basic materials like cement and steel on one hand, and consumption goods from all sections of the society, jobs on the other. The Budget would support growth and the Indian consumption story, keep us in good stead, given global headwinds in China and developed markets, and until the rest of the world eases. Before the budget was presented, investors worried about a rise in capital gains. No change there, has also created a positive reaction. Overall this is a very positive budget for the markets, with something for everyone. I give the budget 10/10.”

K P M Swamy has taken over as the Director (Commercial) of NBCC (India) Limited.  Prior to taking the charge, he was serving in the capacity of Sr. Executive Director (Engg.) and RBG Head, looking after implementation of Supreme Court Monitored stalled Amrapali projects and 7 GPRA redevelopment projects for the company. Swamy also served as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of HSCL, a subsidiary of NBCC, where he successfully turned around the loss making company into a profit making Mini Ratna company.

Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) has recorded the best ever monthly production in January 2023. Crude Steel production of 1.72 Million Tonne (MT) during January 2023 is the best ever monthly performance registering an impressive growth over the previous best achieved in March 2022. SAIL also achieved the best ever monthly production of hot metal and saleable steel at 1.8 MT and 1.61 MT during this month, registering growth over the previous best recorded in March 2022.

Piyush Tiwari, Director (C&M), ITDC, has been assigned an additional charge of Managing Director (MD), India Tourism Development Corporation Limited (ITDC), for a period of three months.

N Ram Prasad (YOA: 2004), presently Deputy Chief of Mission in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, has been appointed as the next High Commissioner of India to the Kingdom of Eswatini.

Saravananu U, CMD, MFL, has been selected for the post of Chairman-cum-Managing Director, National Fertilizers Limited (NFL).

Kartikeya Misra, Director, Department of Financial Services (DFS), Ministry of Finance, has been appointed as Government Director of IFCI Limited.

Mukesh Kumar Bansal, Joint Secretary, Department of Financial Services (DFS), Ministry of Finance, has been appointed as Government Director of IFCI Limited.

HP Ledwani has been re-appointed Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (MD & CEO) of Ador Fontech Limited with effect from May 1, 2023.

Rajesh Kumar Dubey has been appointed as Additional Director in the category of Non-Executive Non-Independent Director (representing LIC of India) of Tourism Finance Corporation of India Limited (TFCI).

Arun Duggal has been appointed as Additional Director in the category of Independent Director of Dr. Lal PathLabs Limited.

Dr. Jaimini Bhagwati has been appointed as Additional Director (Independent) of Apollo Tyres Limited.

Nakul Toshniwal has been re-appointed as Independent Director of GMM Pfaudler Limited.

Ananth Sankaranarayanan has been appointed as Non-Executive Independent Director of Birlasoft Limited.

Mrs. Sunita Rajendra Gandhi has been appointed as Additional Director (Non-Executive Non-Independent) of Stove Kraft Limited.

Rajiv Nitin Mehta has resigned from the position of Chief Executive Officer & Whole-time Director of Stove Kraft Limited.

Date with RTI

You have presented an excellent analysis of the Human Rights which are being wronged in terms of service matters in many organizations. But the sad part is that there is no effective relief. The CIC and the courts have been making different interpretations which are confusing. There is no bar of proactive disclosure in case of organisations which are beyond the purview of the RTI Act as section 4 is applicable. A Practical Solution-most of the service matters can be resolved if the proactive dissemination of information is done effectively

Neeraj

Human rights violation in service matters

The records pertaining to appointment of persons on compassionate grounds and related information was denied by CISF u/s 24 read with second schedule of the RTI Act. The CIC held that the queries raised by the Appellant constitute personal information related to officials who are third parties. Hence, disclosure of information with respect to such queries would be barred even under Section 8(1)(e) and (j) of the RTI Act. Referring to the High Court decision in Director General and Anr. v. Harender, the CIC held that the expression “Human Rights Violation” as used in proviso to Section 24(1) of the Act cannot be read to extend to all matters where a person alleges violation of fundamental rights. Plainly, the said expression cannot be extended to include controversies relating to service matters.

Comments

In most cases, the judicial pronouncements have been in favour of denying information relating to service matters in case of organisations beyond the purview of the RTI Act taking a strict interpretation of what constitutes human rights. It has been argued that if employees of an establishment cannot agitate their grievances before judicial forums, these organizations/establishments may become autocratic. In a judgment dated 22.03.2022, a division bench of Delhi High Court in UoI v. CIC, [LPA 734/2018] observed that the RTI Act is a tool which facilitates the employees and officers in airing their grievances systematically. Holding that non-supply of the information/documents is a human rights violation as in the absence of the same, the RTI applicant would not be able to agitate her right to promotion, the Court directed to provide copies of the seniority list as well the minutes of DPC.

Citation: Shri Ashwani Verma v. CISF, Second Appeal No. CIC/CISFO/A/2021/156819, Date of Decision: 20.01.2023

Dr Anuradha Verma (dranuradhaverma@yahoo.co.in) is a RTI Consultant currently working with IIM Visakhapatnam. She has co-authored the books, RTI Right to Information - Law and Practice and PIO’s Guide to RTI. She offers consultancy on RTI matters and Third party audit. Her other articles can be read at the website of RTI Foundation of India at the link www.rtifoundationofindia.com

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