Consulate General of India, Sydney

Right to Information

A FRAMEWORK FOR TRANSPARENCY AUDIT

The RTI Act under section 4 provides a comprehensive framework for promoting openness in the functioning of the public authorities.

While Section 4(1) (a) provides a general guideline for record management, so that the information could be easily stored and retained, the sub-sections b, c and d of Section 4 relate to the organizational objects and functions. Sub-sections (b), (c) and (d) of Section 4 of the RTI Act and other related information can be grouped under six categories; namely, 1-organsiation and function, 2- Budget and programmes, 3- Publicity and public interface, 4- E. governance, 5- Information as prescribed and 6. Information disclosed on own initiative.

1. Organisation and Function
S. No.	Item	Details of disclosure	Remarks/ Reference Points (Fully met/partially met/ not met- Not applicable will be treated as fully met/partially met)
1.1	Particulars of its organisation, functions and duties	Name and address of the Organization	Consulate General of India, Sydney Level One, Building 265, Castlereagh Street Sydney, NSW 2000
	[Section 4(1)(b)(i)]	Name and address of the Organization
		Head of the organization	The Consulate General of India is headed by the Consul General and has following sections/Wings:
		Vision, Mission and Key objectives	(i) Chancery Wing (ii) Consular Wing (iii) Commercial Section (iv) SVCC & Information Wing
		Function and duties	A Consul ranking officer supervises the functioning of each Wing.
		Organization Chart	The functions of the Consulate, inter alia, include visa, passport and consular services, community affairs, trade and investment promotion, cultural interaction, within the two provincial governments under the jurisdiction of the Consulate, viz., NSW and SA.
		Any other details-the genesis, inception, formation of the department and the HoDs from time to time as well as the committees/ Commissions constituted from time to time have been dealt
1.2	Power and duties of its officers and employees	Powers and duties of officers (administrative, financial and judicial)	The Consulate functions within the overall purview of the business allocated to the Ministry of External Affairs under the Government of India’s Allocation of Business Rules and Transaction of Business Rules.
	[Section 4(1) (b)(ii)]	Power and duties of other employees	General Administrative powers are derived from the Indian Foreign Service (Pay Leave and Compensatory Allowances etc) Rules, 1961, as amended from time to time.
		Rules/ orders under which powers and duty are derived and	Financial powers are exercised in accordance with the guidelines stipulated in the Delegated Financial Powers of the Government of India’s Representatives Abroad.
		Exercised	The Powers relating to Consular services are exercised in accordance with the Passport Act of India, Visa Manual, and other instructions issued by Ministry of Home Affairs.
		Work allocation	The Officers of the Consulate function under the guidance and supervision of the Consul General.
1.3	Procedure followed in decision making process	Process of decision making Identify key decision-making points	Decisions are guided by relevant rules and are arrived at under the instructions and overall supervision of the Consul General.
	[Section 4(1)(b)(iii)]	Final decision making authority
		Related provisions, acts, rules etc.
		Time limit for taking a decisions, if any
		Channel of supervision and accountability
1.4	Norms for discharge of functions	Nature of functions/ services offered	The functions are discharged in accordance with the norms as formulated by the Ministry of External Affairs.
	[Section 4(1)(b)(iv)]	Norms/ standards for functions/ service delivery
		Process by which these services can be accessed
		Time-limit for achieving the targets
		Process of redress of grievances
1.5	Rules, regulations, instructions manual and records for discharging functions	Title and nature of the record/ manual /instruction.	Indian Foreign Service (Pay Leave and Compensatory Allowances etc) Rules, 1961 and its annexure notifying decisions taken by the Government under the Rules
	[Section 4(1)(b)(v)]		Delegated Financial Powers of Government of India’s Representatives abroad
			The Passport Act
		List of Rules, regulations, instructions manuals and records.	Visa Manual
		Acts/ Rules manuals etc.	Manuals on Office Procedures.
		Transfer policy and transfer orders	Other Rules and manuals published by the Central Government.
1.6	Categories of documents held by the authority under its control	Categories of documents	Classified documents/files relating to India’s external relations and other sensitive issues.
1.6	[Section 4(1)(b) (vi)]	(ii) Custodian of documents/categories	Unclassified documents/files including, agreements and Memoranda of Understanding; Passport, visa and consular services applications.
1.7	Boards, Councils, Committees and other Bodies constituted as part of the Public Authority	Name of Boards, Council, Committee etc.	Consulate General of India functions within the norms of India’s foreign policy formulated by the Ministry of External Affairs. Policy is implemented by the Consulate under the guidance and supervision of the Consul General. The Consulate has an informal consultation mechanism with the Indian community on consular, cultural, social and other issues for promoting the welfare of the community.
	[Section 4(1)(b)(viii)]	Composition
		Dates from which constituted
		Term/ Tenure
		Powers and functions
		Whether their meetings are open to the public?
		Whether the minutes of the meetings are open to the public?
		Place where the minutes if open to the public are available?
1.8	Directory of officers and employees	Name and designation	A directory is given at Annexure -I.
1.8	[Section 4(1) (b) (ix)]	Telephone , fax and email ID	A directory is given at Annexure -I.
1.9	Monthly Remuneration received by officers & employees including system of compensation	List of employees with Gross monthly remuneration	A statement of monthly remuneration is at Annexure-II.
1.9	[Section 4(1) (b) (x)]	System of compensation as provided in its regulations	A statement of monthly remuneration is at Annexure-II.
1.10	Name, designation and other particulars of public information officers	Name and designation of the public information officer (PIO), Assistant Public Information (s) & Appellate Authority	Central Public Information Officer:- Mr. Ramneek Singh Vice Consul E-Mail : cons1[dot]sydney[at]mea[dot]gov[dot]in First Appellate Authority Mr. Niravkumar B Sutariya (From 18.01.2024) Consul & HOC E-Mail: hoc[dot]sydney[at]mea[dot]gov[dot]in
	[Section 4(1) (b) (xvi)]





		Address, telephone numbers and email ID of each designated official.	Level 1, 265 Castlereagh Street, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia Tel: +61-2-9223-2702 Fax: +61-2-9231-2299 E-Mail: cons1[dot]sydney[at]mea[dot]gov[dot]in, hoc[dot]sydney[at]mea[dot]gov[dot]in
1.11	No. Of employees against whom Disciplinary action has been proposed/ taken	No. of employees against whom disciplinary action has been	NIL
	(Section 4(2))	Pending for Minor penalty or major penalty proceedings
		Finalised for Minor penalty or major penalty proceedings
1.12	Programmes to advance understanding of RTI	Educational programmes	Time to time the Consulate organizes briefing sessions for the local the Indian Community on miscellaneous Government policies & decisions including RTI
	(Section 26)	Efforts to encourage public authority to participate in these programmes
		Training of CPIO/APIO
		Update & publish guidelines on RTI by the Public Authorities concerned
1.13	Transfer policy and transfer orders		As formulated by the Ministry of External Affairs from time to time.
1.13	[F No. 1/6/2011- IR dt. 15.4.2013]

2. Budget and Programme
S. No.	Item	Details of disclosure	Remarks/ Reference Points (Fully met/partially met/ not met- Not applicable will be treated as fully met/partially met)
2.1	Budget allocated to each agency including all plans, proposed expenditure and reports on disbursements made etc.	Total Budget for the public authority	The Budget figures for the current financial year are given in the statement at Annexure-III
	[Section 4(1)(b)(xi)]	Budget for each agency and plan & programmes
		Proposed expenditures
		Revised budget for each agency, if any
		Report on disbursements made and place where the related reports are available
2.2	Foreign and domestic tours	Budget
	(F. No. 1/8/2012- IR dt. 11.9.2012)	Foreign and domestic Tours by ministries and officials of the rank of Joint Secretary to the Government and above, as well as the heads of the Department.
		Places visited
		The period of visit
		The number of members in the official delegation
		Expenditure on the visit
		Information related to procurements	Tender notices relating to day-to-day functioning of the Consulate i.e. procurements, repair & maintenance job, filling up of job vacancies etc are published on the Consulate’s website from time to time
		Notice/tender enquires, and corrigenda if any thereon,
		Details of the bids awarded comprising the names of the suppliers of goods/ services being procured,
		The works contracts concluded – in any such combination of the above-and
		The rate /rates and the total amount at which such procurement or works contract is to be executed.
2.3	Manner of execution of subsidy programme	Name of the programme of activity	The Consulate General of India does not have any subsidy programme.
	[Section 4(i)(b)(xii)]	Objective of the programme
		Procedure to avail benefits
		Duration of the programme/ scheme
		Physical and financial targets of the programme
		Nature/ scale of subsidy /amount allotted
		Eligibility criteria for grant of subsidy
		Details of beneficiaries of subsidy programme (number, profile etc)
2.4	Discretionary and non-discretionary grants [F. No. 1/6/2011-IR dt. 15.04.2013]	Discretionary and non-discretionary grants/ allocations to State Govt./ NGOs/other institutions	The Consulate does not have any provision in this regard.
2.4		Annual accounts of all legal entities who are provided grants by public authorities	The Consulate does not have any provision in this regard.
2.5	Particulars of recipients of concessions, permits of authorizations granted by the public authority	Concessions, permits or authorizations granted by public authority	No concessions/permits are granted by the Consulate
	[Section 4(1) (b) (xiii)]
		For each concessions, permit or authorization granted
		Eligibility criteria
		Procedure for getting the concession/ grant and/ or
		permits of authorizations
		Name and address of the recipients given concessions/
		permits or authorisations
		Date of award of concessions /permits of authorizations
2.6	`CAG & PAC paras [F No. 1/6/2011- IR dt. 15.4.2013]	CAG and PAC paras and the action taken reports (ATRs) after these have been laid on the table of both houses of the parliament.	NIL



3. Publicity Band Public interface

S. No.	Item	Details of disclosure	Remarks/ Reference Points (Fully met/partially met/ not met- Not applicable will be treated as fully met/partially met)
3.1	Particulars for any arrangement for consultation with or representation by the members of the public in relation to the formulation of policy or implementation there of	Arrangement for consultations with or representation by the members of the public	The Consulate works in close coordination with business associations, think tanks, academicians and also the Indian Association.
	[Section 4(1)(b)(vii)]	Relevant Acts, Rules, Forms and other documents which are normally accessed by citizens
	[F No 1/6/2011-IR dt. 15.04.2013]	Arrangements for consultation with or representation by
		Members of the public in policy formulation/ policy implementation
		Day & time allotted for visitors
		Contact details of Information & Facilitation Counter (IFC) to provide publications frequently sought by RTI applicants
		Public- private partnerships (PPP)
		Details of Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), if any
		Detailed project reports (DPRs)
		Concession agreements.
		Operation and maintenance manuals
		Other documents generated as part of the implementation of the PPP
		Information relating to fees, tolls, or the other kinds of revenues that may be collected under authorisation from the government
		Information relating to outputs and outcomes
		The process of the selection of the private sector party (concessionaire etc.)
		All payment made under the PPP project
3.2	Are the details of policies / decisions, which affect public, informed to them	Publish all relevant facts while formulating important policies or announcing decisions which affect public to make the process more interactive;	Yes.
	[Section 4(1) (c)]	Policy decisions/ legislations taken in the previous one year	The details are properly advertised through the Consulate’s website. The Consulate also organizes briefing sessions on important matters from time to time.
		Outline the Public consultation process
		Outline the arrangement for consultation before formulation of policy
3.3	Dissemination of information widely and in such form and manner which is easily accessible to the public	Use of the most effective means of communication	Through the Consulate’s website which is updated on regular basis. Consulate also makes available to interested individuals/organizations various books, journals, handouts, CD’s and DVD’s containing information on India, its people, culture, and economic policies.
3.3	[Section 4(3)]	Internet (website)
3.4	Form of accessibility of information manual/ handbook	Information manual/handbook available in
	[Section 4(1)(b)]	Electronic format
		Printed format
3.5	Whether information manual/ handbook available free of cost or not	List of materials available
	[Section 4(1)(b)]	Free of cost
		At a reasonable cost of the medium

4. E. Governance
S .No.	Item	Details of disclosure	Remarks/ Reference Points (Fully met/partially met/ not met- Not applicable will be treated as fully met/partially met)
4.1	Language in which Information Manual/Handbook Available	English
4.1	[F No. 1/6/2011-IR dt. 15.4.2013]	Vernacular/ Local Language
4.2	When was the information Manual/Handbook last updated?	Last date of Annual updation
4.2	[F No. 1/6/2011-IR dt 15.4.2013]	Last date of Annual updation
4.3	Information available in electronic form	Details of information available in electronic form	The Consulate website contains all relevant information relating to the normal functioning of the Consulate, activities on the commercial & cultural fronts, consular services and other facilities as available to the public and specific bilateral issues.
	[Section 4(1)(b)(xiv)]	Name/ title of the document/record/ other information
		Location where available
4.4	Particulars of facilities available to citizen for obtaining information	Name & location of the faculty	The Consulate is open to the public during its normal working hours for queries on Consular matters. The queries received from public through post/e-mail are replied to by the same means. The Consulate also makes its meeting hall available for miscellaneous business & cultural activities by the Indian associations.
	[Section 4(1)(b)(xv)]	Details of information made available
		Working hours of the facility
		Contact person & contact details (Phone, fax email)
4.5	Such other information as may be prescribed under section 4(i) (b)(xvii)	Grievance redressal mechanism
		Details of applications received under RTI and information provided	As of date, the Consulate does not have any pending RTI application nor any appeal against the information furnished by the Consulate.
		List of completed schemes/ projects/ Programmes
		List of schemes/ projects/ programme underway
		Details of all contracts entered into including name of the contractor, amount of contract and period of completion of contract
		Annual Report	Annual Report
		Frequently Asked Question (FAQs)
		Any other information such as
		Citizen’s Charter
		Result Framework Document (RFD)
		Six monthly reports on the Performance against the benchmarks set in the Citizen’s Charter

4.6	Receipt & Disposal of RTI applications & appeals [F.No 1/6/2011-IR dt. 15.04.2013]	Details of applications received and disposed	Details for the period 2019-2022 stand furnished in the reports submitted by this Consulate in CIC website. Reports also attached. RTI Details 2019-2023
4.6		Details of appeals received and orders issued
4.7	Replies to questions asked in the parliament	Details of questions asked and replies given	NIL
4.7	[Section 4(1)(d)(2)]	Details of questions asked and replies given	NIL

5. Information as may be prescribed
S. No.	Item	Details of disclosure	Remarks/ Reference Points (Fully met/partially met/ not met- Not applicable will be treated as fully met/partially met)
5.1	Such other information as may be prescribed [F.No. 1/2/2016-IR dt. 17.8.2016, F No. 1/6/2011-IR dt. 15.4.2013]	Name & details of	The names, designations and other particulars of the Public Information Officers:
		Current CPIOs & FAAs	Central Public Information Officer:- Mr. Ramneek Singh Vice Consul E-Mail : cons1[dot]sydney[at]mea[dot]gov[dot]in First Appellate Authority Mr. Niravkumar B Sutariya (From 18.01.2024) Consul & HOC E-Mail: hoc[dot]sydney[at]mea[dot]gov[dot]in
		Earlier CPIO & FAAs from 1.1.2015




		Details of third party audit of voluntary disclosure
		Dates of audit carried out
		Report of the audit carried out
		Appointment of Nodal Officers not below the rank of Joint Secretary/ Additional HoD
		Date of appointment
		Name & Designation of the officers
		Consultancy committee of key stake holders for advice on suo-motu disclosure
		Dates from which constituted
		Name & Designation of the officers
		Committee of PIOs/FAAs with rich experience in RTI to identify frequently sought information under RTI
		Dates from which constituted
		Name & Designation of the Officers
6. Information Disclosed on own Initiative
S. No.	Item	Details of disclosure	Remarks/ Reference Points (Fully met/partially met/ not met- Not applicable will be treated as fully met/partially met)
6.1	Item / information disclosed so that public have minimum resort to use of RTI Act to obtain information		The Consulate’s website has the relevant information which is updated on a regular basis.
6.2	Guidelines for Indian Government Websites (GIGW) is followed (released in February, 2009 and included in the Central Secretariat Manual of Office Procedures (CSMOP) by Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances, Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievance and Pensions, Govt. Of India)	Whether STQC certification obtained and its validity.
6.2		Does the website show the certificate on the Website?

Implementation of the Right to Information Act, 2005

What is "Information"?

Under the Right to Information Act, 2005, the term "information" is defined to mean all documents and records held in the custody of a Public Authority in any form (electronic or physical). All such "information" can be provided to the applicants, subject to the provisions of the RTI Act, 2005. However, please note that the RTI Act , 2005 is only meant to obtain "information" that already exists with the Public Authority and cannot be used for seeking advice/opinion on an issue.

Eligibility of Applicants

Please note that the information under RTI Act can be sought only by Indian Citizens. Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) and Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) are not covered by this Act. Consequently, applicants are advised to submit proof of Indian citizenship along with their application to the Consulate General of India in Sydney.

Fee for Seeking Information

Applicants who are Indian Citizens based in Australia: A person who desires to seek information under the RTI Act from the Central Public Information Officer of the Consulate General of India is required by law to pay, along with the application,A$0.25 [25 Australian Cents, approximately equal to Rs. 10/- (Rupees ten)], as fee prescribed under the RTI Act. The payment of fee shall be made by way of cash only at the Consulate General of India in Sydney between 9.30 AM and 12.30 PM on any working day. Depending on the nature and quantity of the documents sought, other charges may be applicable as per the RTI Act.

Applicants who are Indian Citizens based in India: The fee of Rs.10/- (Rupees Ten only) in respect of such application is to be made by way of Indian Postal Order/Bank Draft/Banker's Cheque payable to "PAO, MEA, New Delhi". Please send the same along with your application by Post.

Central Public Information Officer

Application for seeking information relevant to Consulate General of India in Sydney may be addressed to the Central Public Information Officer in writing only through a letter, fax or E-Mail. Particulars of the Public Information Officer are as follows:

Mr. S.C. Salimath ( From 15.07.2019)
Vice Consul
Consulate General of India
Level 1, 265 Castlereagh Street
Sydney NSW 2000, Australia
Tel : +61-2-9223-2702
Fax : +61-2-9231-2299
E-Mail : cons1.sydney@mea.gov.in

Mr. Rajiv Saxena ( From 01.01.2015 – 14.07.2019 )
Vice Consul
Consulate General of India

First Appellate Authority

If the applicant is not satisfied with the response of the Central Public Information Officer, he/she may approach the First Appellate Authority in writing only at the details given below:

Mr. Sanjay K. Muluka (From 29.11.2019)
Consul & HOC
Consulate General of India
Level 1, 265 Castlereagh Street,
Sydney NSW 2000, Australia
Tel: +61-2-9223-2702
Fax: +61-2-9231-2299
E-Mail: hoc[dot]sydney[at]mea[dot]gov[dot]in

Mr. Chandru Appar (From 26.11.2016 – 22.11.2019)
Consul & HOC
Consulate General of India