Introduce course in RTI: CIC advises UoM

Central Information Commissioner (CIC) Prof Madabhushi Sridhar, on Thursday, appealed to the University of Mysore (UoM) to start a course in Right To Information (RTI), to ensure good governance in the society.

Delivering keynote address during a one-day national seminar on ‘Democratic Governance in India: Problems and Prospects,’ organised by Department of Studies in Political Science, UoM, at Rani Bahadur auditorium, he urged the UoM Vice Chancellor K S Rangappa to start a course in the RTI to expand students’ knowledge of the RTI and Public Interest Litigation (PIL).

“These are the powerful tools to bring out informations hidden in government files. The democratic governance is not complete without sufficient information and people’s participation in the governance,” he said, adding, the course should be taken up by every student irrespective of streams, he appealed.

Further, emphasising on ‘patent’ and ‘Human Rights’, he said, “Though the medicines are available for cancer, poor are losing lives unable to afford them. The patent, also Intellectual Property Rights, should not come in the way of human rights,” he felt.

Pointing at the recent natural calamity in Tamil Nadu that was caused due to heavy rains, Sridhar said, “It was a classic example of lack of good governance by failing to protect water bodies. Lack of efficiency in managing water tanks had a direct impact on human lives and human rights,” he said.

Expressing regret over large scale violation of human rights, Sridhar said, a majority of
the offenders are those who are tasked to protect others rights.

Earlier, Vice Chancellor Prof K S Rangappa released a book, ‘Human Rights Issues and Dimensions’ authored by Prof Midatala Rani from the Department of Studies in Political Science in the varsity.

Following Sridhar’s advise, the VC also assured to start a course in the RTI. He also urged Rani and Political Science Department Head Prof Muzaffar Assadi to work on the proposal.