NOTIFICATION

All Indian citizens resident in Bulgaria and Macedonia are hereby notified that Dr. Adarsh Swaika, Second Secretary in the Embassy, is the Public Information Officer (PIO) with immediate effect in order to implement the Right to Information Act 2005 (RTI Act) which came into force with effect from 12.10.2005. Dr. Adarsh Swaika would be the nodal officer in the Embassy to deal with matters pertaining to the RTI Act. Mr. Lal Dingliana, Ambassador of the Republic of India to the Republic of Bulgaria is the Appellate Authority. The contact details of Dr. Adarsh Swaika for the purpose are given below:

Dr. Adarsh Swaika, Public Information Officer (PIO), Embassy of India, Sofia
Tel: 02-963 56 75, 963 56 77 & 963 56 76, Fax: 02-963 56 86, E-mail: hoc@indembsofia.org

The Right to Information under the provisions of the RTI Act is available to the citizens of India only. RTI Act is an important legislation designed to promote transparency and accountability in the functioning of public authorities. The full text of the RTI Act is available on the website: http://righttoinformation.gov.in/RTI-Act.pdf. Detailed information on this Act is available on the DOPT website: http://www.persmin.nic.in. The various provisions of the RTI Act are also available on the website http://cic.gov.in. The RTI Act also provides for appeals by aggrieved persons to the Central Information Commission of the Government of India.

The details of the fees for seeking information under the RTI Act can also be found on the Embassy’s website. The prescribed fees, along with the RTI application, should be paid in cash in BGN. DOPT’s notification on fees to be charged can be seen on the website http://righttoinformation.gov.in.

Indian citizens resident in Bulgaria and Macedonia may seek information in writing on payment of requisite fee during office hours on working days as per procedure laid down in the RTI Act.

RTI Act, 2005

Details of Fees payable for seeking information under RTI Act, 2005

The fee details are as given below:

1. A request for obtaining information under sub-section (I) of Section 6 of the RTI Act shall be accompanied by an application fee of Rs. 10/- (payable in BGN at the prevailing rate of exchange) by way of cash against proper receipt.
2. For providing the information under sub-section (I) of Section 7 of the RTI Act, the fee shall be charged by way of cash against proper receipt at the following rates:
   1. Rupees 2/- (payable in BGN at the prevailing rate of exchange) for each page (in A-4 or A-3 size paper) created or copied;
   2. actual charge or cost price of a copy in larger size paper;
   3. actual cost or price for samples or models; and
   4. for inspection of records, no fee for the first hour; and a fee of Rupees 5/- (payable in BGN at the prevailing rate of exchange) for each subsequent hour (or fraction thereof) thereafter.
3. For providing the information under sub-section (5) of Section 7, the fee shall be charged by way of cash against proper receipt at the following rates:
   1. for information provided in diskette or floppy, Rupees 50/- (payable in BGN at the prevailing rate of exchange) per diskette or floppy; and
   2. for information provided in printed form at the price fixed for such publication or Rupees 2 (payable in BGN at the prevailing rate of exchange) per page of photocopy for extracts from the publication.

RTI Act, 2005
April 13, 2007