Karnataka extends online RTI filing to all Bengaluru One, Karnataka One and Grama One centres

Karnataka has connected physical RTI applications to the Sakala Services Act, 2011. Public authorities receiving an application by post or in person must register it on the RTI online portal within two working days. This makes the deadline mandatory and gives applicants an online registration number for tracking.

The government has also expanded assisted online filing. Citizens may visit Bengaluru One, Karnataka One or Grama One centres, pay the prescribed RTI fee and a nominal service charge, and receive an online acknowledgement there. Staff help applicants submit their requests.

The changes bring physical applications, direct online submissions and service-centre applications onto one platform. Officials can monitor deadlines and identify delays more easily. The government says the arrangement should improve transparency and access, especially for people without internet access or computer familiarity.

Citizens can file RTI applications through Bengaluru One, Karnataka One and Grama One centres. The article does not identify particular branches, so the nearest centre in one of these networks is the practical option. Staff at the centre help applicants submit the request online.

For example, someone unfamiliar with computers can visit a Grama One centre at the gram panchayat level. The applicant pays the prescribed RTI fee and the centre’s nominal service charge. The centre then issues an online acknowledgement, giving the applicant confirmation of submission.

The expansion is designed for people who lack internet access or are unfamiliar with computers. Grama One centres are meant to extend this access into rural areas. By using service centres, the government brings assisted applications onto the same platform as physical and direct online submissions.

A public authority has two working days to register an RTI application received by post or in person on the RTI online portal. This is not merely an administrative target. The service has been notified as guaranteed under Karnataka’s Sakala Services Act, 2011.

For example, if an applicant sends an RTI request by post, the receiving public authority must enter it online within the two-working-day limit. Once registered, the applicant receives an online registration number. That number allows the applicant to track the request’s status through the online system.

The deadline addresses delays that could occur before physically submitted applications were entered into the portal. The common platform also helps monitor compliance and identify delays by information officers. If the application is not uploaded on time, the applicant becomes eligible for compensation under the Sakala Act, and the responsible officer is held accountable.

If a public authority fails to upload an RTI application within two working days, the applicant becomes eligible for compensation under Karnataka’s Sakala Act. The missed deadline therefore creates a direct remedy for the person who submitted the request.

The responsible officer is also held accountable. The requirement applies when an application arrives by post or in person and is not registered on the RTI online portal within the stipulated period. Once uploaded, the applicant should receive an online registration number and be able to track the application.

This arrangement turns the two-day period into a guaranteed service, rather than an informal expectation. It is intended to reduce delays between receiving a physical application and entering it into the online system. The government says the common platform will make compliance easier to monitor and help identify information officers responsible for delays.

Karnataka’s guidelines set a seven-working-day limit for deciding both stages of RTI appeals. A first appeal must be decided by the competent appellate authority within seven working days. A second appeal also has to be disposed of within seven working days by the concerned appellate authority.

For example, after an RTI matter reaches the first appeal stage, the competent appellate authority must decide it within the stated period. If it proceeds to a second appeal, the authority concerned again has seven working days to dispose of it. The order identifies that authority as the Secretary of the department concerned.

These timelines add defined deadlines to the appeal process described in the order. They sit alongside the two-working-day registration requirement for physical applications. Together, the measures are intended to make RTI processing easier to monitor and to expose delays by the relevant officials.

The Public Information Officer, or PIO, is the officer concerned with an RTI application under the process described. The article does not give a broader statutory definition of the PIO’s duties. It identifies the nodal officer as the district- or department-level official who handles portal-registration issues.

If the responsible PIO is not registered on the RTI online portal, the application must be forwarded to the appropriate nodal officer. That officer must ensure the PIO is registered without delay. This prevents an unregistered officer from blocking the application’s entry into the online system.

The arrangement supports one common platform for physical, direct online and service-centre applications. It also helps preserve online tracking and oversight when a PIO lacks portal registration. The article states that the nodal officer is responsible for ensuring registration, but it does not specify a separate deadline for completing it.

The Right to Information is a legal process through which citizens seek information from public authorities. The article identifies the governing law as the Right to Information Act, 2005. It presents RTI as a way for applicants to submit requests, follow their status and use appeals when needed.

In Karnataka, an applicant can submit a request directly online, through a service centre or physically by post or in person. A physical request must be registered online within two working days. The applicant receives a registration number, while first and second appeals must be decided within seven working days.

These tools make public authorities more answerable for handling requests. A common platform allows officials to monitor compliance and identify delays by information officers. If a physical application is not uploaded on time, the applicant may qualify for Sakala compensation and the responsible officer may be held accountable. The article does not describe every RTI entitlement or exemption.