Right to Information

RIGHT TO INFORMATION

The Right to Information Act, 2005 (RTI) is an important legislation to promote transparency and accountability in the functioning of public authorities of India. The right to information under the provisions of the RTI Act is available to the citizens of India only. The RTI Act provides for appeals by aggrieved persons to the Central Information Commission of the Government of India (text of the RTI Act is available at https://rti.gov.in).

The contact details of the Appellate Authority and the Public Information Officer are as below :

(i) Mrs. Reenat Sandhu, Ambassador of India,
Tel : 00-31-703469771
Fax : 00-31-70-3617072
Email: amb.thehague@mea.gov.in

(ii) Ms. K.C Sowmya, Counsellor (Centre Public Information Officer)

Tel : 00-31-703469771
Fax : 00-31-70-3617072
Email: legal.thehague@mea.gov.in

Indian citizens resident in the Netherlands may seek information in writing on payment of requisite fee during office hours on working days as per procedure laid down in the RTI Act, 2005. Applications seeking information under the Act may be sent along with a fee in Euros equivalent to INR 10/- (Indian Rupee ten only) in cheque or demand draft in favor of Embassy of India. The mailing address is Embassy of India, Buitenrustweg 2, 2517 KD, The Hague, The Netherlands. Applications should be submitted along with documentary proof of Indian Citizenship (eg., copy of personal particulars pages of passport). Further information is available at http://rti.gov.in.

As per Section 6(1) (a) of the RTI Act, 2005, a person who desires to obtain information under the Act is required to submit the application to the Information Officer of the ‘concerned public authority’. Applicants are, therefore, advised to send their requests under the RTI Act to the Embassy only when the subject matter can reasonably be presumed to pertain to the Embassy. Where the information required obviously does not pertain to the Embassy, the application may be addressed to the concerned Public Information Officer (PIO) directly.

Payment of RTI fee online

The scheme of Electronic Indian Postal Order (eIPO) has been launched by the Department of Posts, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, in association with Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT). This would enable the Indian citizens abroad to pay the RTI fee online.

An Indian Postal Order can be purchased electronically by paying a fee on-line through e-Post Office Portal or through India Post website. The web-links for payment are:

www.indiapost.gov.in ; www.epostoffice.gov.in

The RTI application accompanied by an eIPO is similar in all respects to the RTI application accompanied by fees through any other approved mode. All the provisions regarding eligibility, time limit, exemptions etc; as provided in the RTI Act, 2005 continue to apply.

Procedure

The RTI applicant is required to register on the website to create her/his profile. Then she/he has to select the Ministry/Department from whom she/he desires to seek information under the RTI Act. The eIPO is generated which can be used to seek information from that Ministry/ Department only. A printout of the eIPO is required to be attached with the RTI application sent in hard copy. In case RTI application is filed electronically, the eIPO is enclosed as an attachment. The guidelines for use of RTI online Portal are available on the link: https://rtionline.gov.in/guidelines.php?request

INFORMATION ABOUT THE EMBASSY OF INDIA, THE HAGUE REQUIRED UNDER SECTION 4(1)(B) OF THE RTI ACT, 2005

(i)	The particulars of its organization, functions and duties;	Embassy of India is headed by Ambassador and has following wings: (i) Administration, Protocol and Establishment Wing (ii) Economic and Commercial Wing (iii) Press, Information, Culture and Community Wing (iv) Political, Defence and Security Wing (v) Consular, Science & Technology & Student Wing (vi) Legal & Tourism Wing. The Gandhi Centre in The Hague is part of Cultural wing of the Embassy. Each wing of the Embassy is headed by a Counsellor, First Secretary or Second Secretary rank Officer. The functions of the Embassy inter alia, include cooperation in bilateral and multilateral matters; trade and investment promotion; sectoral cooperation in Agriculture, Water, Port, Shipping & Inland Waterways, Science & Technology, Healthcare, Space, Defence, Renewable Energy; rendering of consular- visa, passports, & other miscellaneous services; students and community interaction. The Gandhi Centre organizes regular events showcasing various cultural art forms of India such as music, dance and cinema, lectures and workshops on different facets of India as well as Yoga, Hindi and Tabla lessons. The Embassy in The Hague is also Permanent Representation of India to the Organization for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). The Embassy also takes care of India’s representations in other multilateral organizations such as the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), Hague Academy of International Law, Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) and Common Fund for Commodities (CFC). Embassy functions within the purview of business allocated to the Ministry of External Affairs under the Government of India's Allocation of Business Rules and Transaction of Business Rules.
(ii)	The powers and duties of its officers and employees;	Embassy of India functions within the ambit of India's foreign policy formulated by the Ministry of External Affairs and various instructions received from time to time. General Administrative powers are derived from IFS (PLCA) Rules, as amended from time to time. General Financial Rules (GFRs) Government of India isfollowed for financial matters. Financial powers of the officers of the Embassy of India have been detailed in the Delegated Financial powers of the Government of India's Representatives Abroad. Consular powers are derived from the Passport Act of India; Passport, Visa, and Consular Manuals; and Indian Community Welfare Fund (ICWF) guidelines as amended from time to time.
(iii)	The procedure followed in the decision making process, including channels of supervision and accountability;	Various wings function and take decisions under the instructions and supervision of the Ambassador. Counsellor (Consular) in consular matters and Head of Chancery in administrative matters also supervises and decisions are made at their levels as per delegated powers provided under relevant regulations.
(iv)	The norms set by it for the discharge of its functions	The processing times for various consular services have been mentioned on the Embassy's website, which are subject to change due to unforeseen situations such as COVID pandemic.
(v)	The rules, regulations, instructions, manuals and records, held by it or under its control or used by its employees for discharging its functions;	IFS (PLCA) rules and annexures issued by Ministry of External Affairs from time to time, Delegated Financial Powers of Government of India's Representatives abroad, Passport Act, Visa Manual, Manuals on Office Procedures, other relevant Rules and manuals published by Central Government as well as instruction issued by Ministry of External Affairs of India.
(vi)	A statement of the categories of documents that are held by it or under its control;	Classified documents/files relating to India's external relations. Unclassified documents/files including joint statements, declarations, agreements and MoUs, passport, consular services application forms, administrative and financial papers relating to receipt and expenditure and service records.
(vii)	The particulars of any arrangement that exists for consultation with, or representation by, the members of the public in relation to the formulation of its policy or implementation thereof;	Interaction with Indian diaspora, community organizations, business entities and organizations, student bodies, and think tanks in the Netherlands is integral part of Embassy's activities. The respective wings of the Embassy are involved in these interactions. Various committees including Tender Evaluation Committee are formed as per the applicable rules, regulations and instructions from Ministry of External Affairs.
(viii)	A statement of the boards, councils, committees and other bodies consisting of two or more persons constituted as its part or for the purpose of its advice, and as to whether meetings of those boards, councils, committees and other bodies are open to the public, or the minutes of such meetings are accessible for public;
(ix)	A directory of its officers and employees;	Directory of officers of Embassy of India, The Hague as on 14 October 2022, The Hague is placed at Annexure-I.
(x)	The monthly remuneration received by each of its officers and employees, including the system of compensations provided in its regulations;	Official both India-based and locally recruited receive monthly remuneration based on their pay scale and applicable allowances as per relevant regulations. Pay-scale of officials is placed at Annexure-II.
(xi)	The budget allocated to each of its agency, indicating the particulars of all plans, proposed expenditures and reports on disbursements made;	The Budget figures for the current financial year is placed at Annexure-III.
(xii)	The manner of execution of subsidy programmes, including the amounts allocated and the details of beneficiaries of such programmes;	The Embassy of India, The Hague does not have any subsidy programme.
(xiii)	Particulars of concessions, permits or authorizations granted by the organization.	No concessions, permits or authorization are granted by the Embassy of India in The Hague.
(xiv)	Details in respect of the information, available to or held by it, reduced in an electronic form;	The Embassy's website has the required information.
(xv)	The particulars of facilities available to citizens for obtaining information, including the working hours of a library or reading room, if maintained for public use;	The information can be requested as per Right to Information, Act. No library or reading room for obtaining the information is available with the Embassy. The contact details of the Appellate Authority and the Public Information Officer are as below : (i) Ms. Reenat Sandhu, Ambassador (Appellate Authority) Tel : 00-31-703469771 Fax : 00-31-70-3617072 (ii) Ms. K.C Sowmya, First Secretary (Centre Public Information Officer) Tel : 00-31-703469771 Fax : 00-31-70-3617072
(xvi)	The names, designations and other particulars of the Public Information Officers;
(xvii)	Such other information as may be prescribed and thereafter update these publications every year;	The Embassy's website has information which is updated on a regular basis.

Annexure-I

S.No.	Name	Designation
1	Mr. Gince Kuruvilla Mattam	Deputy Chief of Mission
2	Ms. Shubhra Pande	Counsellor (Consular & Student Affairs)
3	Ms. K. C. Sowmya	Counsellor (Legal)
4	Dr. Tanu Priya	First Secretary (Political)
5	Ms. Mansi Goyal	First Secretary (Political & OPCW)
6	Mr. Satya Prasanth Pinisetty	First Secretary (Economic & Commerce)
7	Ms. Tara Pathak	First Secretary (Press, Information & Culture) & Community Affairs
8	Mr. Bhakt Bhushan	Second Secretary (Head of Chancery)
9	Mr. Sanjay Kanojia	PPS to Ambassador
10	Mr. Niket Mohan Sharma	Attaché (Administration) & DDO
11	Mr. Abhinav Singh	Attaché (Property & Protocol)

Annexure-II

Monthly Remuneration of the Officers at the Embassy of India, The Hague

S.No	Designation	Pay Scale in INR
1	Ambassador	182200—225000
2	Counsellor	123100—215900
3	First Secretary	78800—209200
4	Second Secretary/PPS	67700—208700
5	Attaché	56100—177500
6	Assistant Section Officer/PA	44900—142400
7	Junior Sectt. Assistant	19900—63200
8	Security Assistants	21700—69100

Apart from basic pay, India-based officers/staff are paid Foreign Allowance which is fixed by the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi from time to time.

Annexure- III

Budget Estimate details for the Embassy of India, The Hague for 2023-24