Kanpur:
The Right to Information Act has changed many lives. One such success story is that of 69-year-old Jagdish Chandra Mishra, a retired government servant, who used the RTI to reclaim long-pending dues from the very place he devoted his life to.
Mishra retired as accounts officer in 2002 with almost all his finances sorted out. All that was left was a claim for government sponsored health insurance. But little did he realise that he would have to shell out Rs 10,000 to claim a sum of Rs 21,800 and also endure a wait of seven long years for the money to come his way.
"While I was in the job, I handled transactions worth crores, but after retirement I was made to run from pillar to post for a paltry sum of Rs 21,800," said Mishra, a nominee for the NDTV RTI Awards.
"I had a bout of paralysis after retirement due to this running around," added Mishra.
Seven years later the draft issued in 2001 finally arrived. But Mishra could not encash it because the six-month deadline had expired years ago.
Things changed when his nephew Satyavijay made him realise the power of RTI.
"Since I had been assigned the responsibility, I did most of the running around," said Satyavijay.
Within barely 20 days of filing the application, Mishra had a fresh draft issued to him. The department still owes him Rs 37,000 in interest, an amount more than the principal amount itself. But given his success with the RTI, Mishra is now hoping to claim that as well.
Mishra retired as accounts officer in 2002 with almost all his finances sorted out. All that was left was a claim for government sponsored health insurance. But little did he realise that he would have to shell out Rs 10,000 to claim a sum of Rs 21,800 and also endure a wait of seven long years for the money to come his way.
"While I was in the job, I handled transactions worth crores, but after retirement I was made to run from pillar to post for a paltry sum of Rs 21,800," said Mishra, a nominee for the NDTV RTI Awards.
"I had a bout of paralysis after retirement due to this running around," added Mishra.
Seven years later the draft issued in 2001 finally arrived. But Mishra could not encash it because the six-month deadline had expired years ago.
Things changed when his nephew Satyavijay made him realise the power of RTI.
"Since I had been assigned the responsibility, I did most of the running around," said Satyavijay.
Within barely 20 days of filing the application, Mishra had a fresh draft issued to him. The department still owes him Rs 37,000 in interest, an amount more than the principal amount itself. But given his success with the RTI, Mishra is now hoping to claim that as well.
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