MISCELLANEOUSCentral

Section 25 of The Right to Information Act, 2005

(1)The Central Information Commission or State Information Commission, as the case may be, shall, as soon as practicable after the end of each year, prepare a report on the implementation of the provisions of this Act during that year and forward a copy thereof to the appropriate Government.
(2)Each Ministry or Department shall, in relation to the public authorities within their jurisdiction, collect and provide such information to the Central Information Commission or State Information Commission, as the case may be, as is required to prepare the report under this section and comply with the requirements concerning the furnishing of that information and keeping of records for the purposes of this section.
(3)Each report shall state in respect of the year to which the report relates,--
1. (a)the number of requests made to each public authority;
2. (b)the number of decisions where applicants were not entitled to access to the documents pursuant to the requests, the provisions of this Act under which these decisions were made and the number of times such provisions were invoked;
3. (c)the number of appeals referred to the Central Information Commission or State Information Commission, as the case may be, for review, the nature of the appeals and the outcome of the appeals;
4. (d)particulars of any disciplinary action taken against any officer in respect of the administration of this Act;
5. (e)the amount of charges collected by each public authority under this Act;
6. (f)any facts which indicate an effort by the public authorities to administer and implement the spirit and intention of this Act;
7. (g)recommendations for reform, including recommendations in respect of the particular public authorities, for the development, improvement, modernisation, reform or amendment to this Act or other legislation or common law or any other matter relevant for operationalising the right to access information.
(4)The Central Government or the State Government, as the case may be, may, as soon as practicable after the end of each year, cause a copy of the report of the Central Information Commission or the State Information Commission, as the case may be, referred to in sub-section (1) to be laid before each House of Parliament or, as the case may be, before each House of the State Legislature, where there are two Houses, and where there is one House of the State Legislature before that House.
(5)If it appears to the Central Information Commission or State Information Commission, as the case may be, that the practice of a public authority in relation to the exercise of its functions under this Act does not conform with the provisions or spirit of this Act, it may give to the authority a recommendation specifying the steps which ought in its opinion to be taken for promoting such conformity.

Summary

The Information Commissions must prepare a report each year on how the law is being implemented.
Each Ministry or Department must collect and give implementation data from public bodies under its control to the Commission.
The annual report must include requests received, rejections made, appeals filed, disciplinary actions, and charges collected.
The appropriate Government must lay a copy of the Commission's report before Parliament or the State Legislature.
The Commission can recommend changes to public bodies if their practices do not follow the law.

Practical examples

1At the end of 2026, the Central Information Commission gathers data from all ministries. It compiles a report showing that fifty thousand requests were made and ten thousand rupees were collected as fees. Under Section 25, the Government lays this report before Parliament.

2The State Information Commission finds that a local transport department is regularly ignoring requests. Under Section 25, the Commission issues a formal recommendation to the department detailing how to fix its filing practices to match the spirit of the law.

FAQ

1. Who prepares the annual implementation report under Section 25 of the Right to Information Act, 2005?

Under Section 25 of the Right to Information Act, 2005, the Central Information Commission or State Information Commission, as the case may be, prepares the annual report.

2. What must ministries do to help prepare the annual report under Section 25 of the Right to Information Act, 2005?

Under Section 25 of the Right to Information Act, 2005, each Ministry or Department must collect and provide information about the public authorities in their jurisdiction to the relevant Information Commission.

3. What happens to the annual report prepared under Section 25 of the Right to Information Act, 2005?

Under Section 25 of the Right to Information Act, 2005, the Central Government or State Government must cause a copy of the report to be laid before each House of Parliament or the State Legislature, as the case may be.

Test yourself

Q1.Under Section 25 of the Right to Information Act, 2005, which of the following is NOT a mandatory detail required in the annual implementation report?

Q2.Who is responsible for laying the annual report of the Information Commission before the Parliament or State Legislature under Section 25 of the Right to Information Act, 2005?

Q3.Under Section 25 of the Right to Information Act, 2005, what action can the Information Commission take if a public authority's practices do not conform with the Act?

Q4.How do the annual reporting requirements under Section 25 of the Right to Information Act, 2005 interact with Section 24's exempt organisations?

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