Section Text
2005.
extent and
commencemen
(2) It extends to the whole of India except the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
(3) The provisions of sub-section (1) of section 4, sub-sections (1) and (2) of
section 5, sections 12, 13, 15,16, 24, 27 and 28 shall come into force at once, and the
remaining provisions of this Act shall come into force on the one hundred and
twentieth day of its enactment.
Section 2 - Definitions (a) "appropriate Government" means in relation to a public authority which is
established, constituted, owned, controlled or substantially financed by funds provided
directly or indirectly—
(i) by the Central Government or the Union territory administration, the
Central Government;
(ii) by the State Government, the State Government;
(b) "Central Information Commission" means the Central Information Commission
constituted under sub-section (1) of section 12;
(c) "Central Public Information Officer" means the Central Public Information
Officer designated under sub-section (1) and includes a Central Assistant Public
Information Officer designated as such under sub-section (2) of section 5;
(d) "Chief Information Commissioner" and "Information Commissioner" mean the
Chief Information Commissioner and Information Commissioner appointed under
sub-section (3) of section 12;
(e) "competent authority" means—
(i) the Speaker in the case of the House of the People or the Legislative
Assembly of a State or a Union territory having such Assembly and the
Chairman in the case of the Council of States or Legislative Council of a
State;
(ii) the Chief Justice of India in the case of the Supreme Court;
(iii) the Chief Justice of the High Court in the case of a High Court;
(iv) the President or the Governor, as the case may be, in the case of other
authorities established or constituted by or under the Constitution;
(v) the administrator appointed under article 239 of the Constitution;
(f) "information" means any material in any form, including records, documents,
memos, e-mails, opinions, advices, press releases, circulars, orders, logbooks,
contracts, reports, papers, samples, models, data material held in any electronic form
SEC.1 THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 3
and information relating to any private body which can be accessed by a public
authority under any other law for the time being in force;
(g) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act by the appropriate
Government or the competent authority, as the case may be;
(h) "public authority" means any authority or body or institution of self-
government established or constituted—
(a) by or under the Constitution;
(b) by any other law made by Parliament;
(c) by any other law made by State Legislature;
(d) by notification issued or order made by the appropriate Government,
and includes any—
(i) body owned, controlled or substantially financed;
(ii) non-Government organisation substantially financed,
directly or indirectly by funds provided by the appropriate Government;
(i) "record" includes—
(a) any document, manuscript and file;
(b) any microfilm, microfiche and facsimile copy of a document;
(c) any reproduction of image or images embodied in such microfilm (whether
enlarged or not); and
(d) any other material produced by a computer or any other device;
(j) "right to information" means the right to information accessible under this Act
which is held by or under the control of any public authority and includes the right
to—
(i) inspection of work, documents, records;
(ii) taking notes, extracts or certified copies of documents or records;
(iii) taking certified samples of material;
(iv) obtaining information in the form of diskettes, floppies, tapes, video
cassettes or in any other electronic mode or through printouts where such
information is stored in a computer or in any other device;
(k) "State Information Commission" means the State Information Commission
constituted under sub-section (1) of section 15;
(1) "State Chief Information Commissioner" and "State Information Commissioner"
mean the State Chief Information Commissioner and the State Information
Commissioner appointed under sub-section (3) of section 15;
(m) "State Public Information Officer" means the State Public Information Officer
designated under sub-section (1) and includes a State Assistant Public Information
Officer designated as such under sub-section (2) of section 5;
(n) "third party" means a person other than the citizen making a request for
information and includes a public authority.
4 THE GAZETTER OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY [PART II—