Ratni Devi Bhojak v. Central Public Information Officer, State Bank Of India

1. The appellant filed an application under the Right to Information Act, 2005 (RTI Act) before the Central Public Information Officer (CPIO), State Bank of India (SBI), Regional Business Office (RBO), Churu (Raj.), seeking information on four points pertaining to overtime allowance paid to employees of Sardarshahar Main Branch, including, inter-alia, (i) certified copies of Rules/guidelines under which overtime allowance is being paid to the employees at the end of the financial year, and (ii) details regarding the total no. of employees who were given the allowance and the number of employees who were not given the allowance.

2. The appellant filed a second appeal before the Commission on the grounds that the CPIO has wrongly denied the information sought by stating that it is not available in material form. The appellant contended that the Banks pay overtime allowance and the records relating to it are maintained by the Banks. The appellant requested the Commission to direct the respondent to provide the desired information to her, free of cost, to impose penalty upon the CPIO, to take necessary action against the erring official and to award her compensation.

Hearing:

3. The appellant Smt. Ratni Devi Bhojak and the respondent Shri Shiv Kr. Gupta, Chief Manager, State Bank of India, RBO, Station Road, Churu (Raj.) attended the hearing through video-conferencing.

4. The appellant submitted that the CPIO has not provided information pertaining to overtime allowance paid to employees of Sardarshahar Main Branch as sought by her. Further, the respondent should provide the reasons for not paying overtime allowance to her.

5. The respondent submitted that the information sought by the appellant is not available in material form with the Bank. Further, the information sought pertains to the record of the erstwhile branch of State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur (SBBJ), Churu, which is now closed. Hence, the records, perhaps, could have been shifted to another branch.

DECISION

6. The Commission, after hearing the submissions of both the parties and perusing the records, observes that the respondent stated during the hearing that overtime allowance was being paid to the employees of Sardarshahar Main Branch. Hence, the records relating to the same should be available with the Bank. In view of this, in case the information was not available with the RBO Churu, the respondent should have sought assistance of the officer/Department concerned, under Section 5(4) of the RTI Act, and furnished the same to the appellant. The Commission, therefore, directs the respondent to provide a copy of the Rules/guidelines pertaining to payment of overtime allowance to the employees along with the number of employees in the Branch who were paid overtime allowance during the Financial Year 2015-16, if required by seeking assistance of the officials/Department concerned under Section 5(4) of the RTI Act, to the appellant within a period of four weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order under intimation to the Commission.

7. With the above observations, the appeal is disposed of.

8. Copy of the decision be provided free of cost to the parties.