Ranchi: After nearly five years of waiting, Jharkhand has finally appointed four new Information Commissioners. At a swearing-in ceremony held at Lok Bhavan on Wednesday, Governor Santosh Kumar Gangwar administered the oath of office to Anuj Sinha, Tanuj Khatri, Shivpujan Pathak and Amul Neeraj Khalkho.
Hemant Soren was also present at the ceremony. Among those in attendance were Minister Shilpi Neha Tirkey, Rajya Sabha MPs Baidyanath Ram and Mahua Maji, Union Minister of State Sanjay Seth, and Keshav Mahato Kamlesh, along with several public representatives and senior government officials.
The posts of Information Commissioners in the Jharkhand State Information Commission had remained vacant for a long time, affecting the functioning of the Commission. With the appointment and swearing-in of the four new commissioners, the Commission is expected to become more effective and efficient.
The appointments were recommended by a high-level selection committee headed by Chief Minister Hemant Soren and received the Governor’s approval on June 10.
The appointments are being viewed as more than just a routine administrative exercise. They are expected to strengthen citizens’ democratic right to information, as the prolonged shortage of Information Commissioners had left the State Information Commission functioning with limited capacity, resulting in a large backlog of pending Right to Information (RTI) appeals.
With four new commissioners joining the Commission, its capacity is expected to increase significantly, enabling faster disposal of long-pending cases. This is likely to improve transparency, enhance accountability in government departments, and support more effective implementation of the Right to Information Act.