Panaji: After observing no compliance with the Right to Information Act, the Bombay high court directed the PIO, i.e., the inspector of survey and land records, Pernem, to furnish all the information sought by an RTI applicant free of charge within one week.The HC stated that there was a failure on the part of the ISLR, Pernem, to maintain all information in digitised form and accessible to the public over the internet.The man went to the high court after the State Information Commission dismissed his appeal under the RTI Act. The HC quashed the commission’s order and observed that his application dated Sept 1, 2023, seeking information under RTI was very clear, and the information ought to have been maintained in digital form by the ISLR, Pernem.The court stated that Section 4(2) of the RTI Act mandates every public authority to maintain all its records under a catalogue and index in a manner and form facilitating citizens to obtain information easily.This mandate of subsection 2 requires the public authority to constantly endeavour to provide as much information suo moto to the public through various modes of communication, including the internet, the court stated.“This provision specifies the object of the legislation, i.e., to ensure that the public has minimum resort to the RTI Act, and the public can access information without having to pay for the same through the medium of the internet. Obviously, there is a failure on the part of the ISLR, Pernem, which is the public authority that is required to maintain all its information in digitised form and accessible to the public over the internet,” stated Justice Valmiki Menezes.