The obligation of a public authority under the Right to Information Act, 2005 does not include
publication of all relevant facts while formulating important policies which affect public
providing reasons for its administrative decisions to affected persons
publication of all relevant facts while announcing decisions which affect public
providing information regarding commercial confidence to an applicant except in case of larger public interest
Answer is Wrong!
Answer is Right!
This question was previously asked in
UPSC SO-Steno – 2017
A) publication of all relevant facts while formulating important policies which affect public: This is an obligation under Section 4(1)(c).
B) providing reasons for its administrative decisions to affected persons: This is an obligation under Section 4(1)(d).
C) publication of all relevant facts while announcing decisions which affect public: This is part of the obligation under Section 4(1)(c).
D) providing information regarding commercial confidence to an applicant except in case of larger public interest: Section 8 lists exemptions, meaning a public authority is *not obliged* to provide such information. Section 8(1)(d) specifically exempts information relating to commercial confidence, trade secrets, or intellectual property, unless the public interest in disclosure outweighs the harm. While the public interest clause *allows* disclosure in specific cases, the general stance under Section 8 is one of non-disclosure, not a positive obligation to provide such information. The obligations are primarily defined by Section 4 (proactive disclosure) and Section 7 (responding to requests for non-exempt information). Providing commercially sensitive information is not a general obligation; it is an exception to non-disclosure allowed under the public interest override.
– Section 8 lists types of information that public authorities are *not obliged* to disclose.
– Information concerning commercial confidence falls under Section 8(1)(d) as an exempted category.
– The public interest override in Section 8 allows disclosure of otherwise exempt information but does not create a positive obligation to provide such information as a routine matter.