Bring private infrastructure players under RTI, activist urges President
Anil Galgali has written a letter to Pratibha Patil demanding that all such private players be brought under the ambit of the RTI.
With the Private Public Partnership (PPP) model becoming the mantra for developing infrastructure projects across the country, noted RTI activist Anil Galgali has written a letter to the President of India, Pratibha Patil, demanding that all such private players be brought under the ambit of the RTI.
“I had demanded the details of cost escalation in the first metro line in Mumbai, which is to run between Versova and Ghatkopar through Andheri,” Galgali told DNA. “Initially, the information officers in Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) hesitated to give the information, claiming that the details were available with the Reliance Infrastructure-led consortium Mumbai Metro One Pvt Ltd (MMOPL). Despite repeated pleas, the information was not made available to me,” added Galgali. This prompted Galgali to write a letter to the President.
The letter stated: “Since projects carried out by private sector companies are of vital public interest, information about all aspects of these projects must be brought under the public domain. There are chances that private companies may misuse the authority given to them while carrying out these projects and make money through illegal means. This can spread in many sectors to a large extent, creating ample room for scams and may even go out of control.”