Tribune News Service
Patiala, July 13

The Municipal Corporation here does not have the data on various buildings sealed by it between May and July last year. The matter came to light after an RTI activist sought details from the civic body.

MC officials attributed the data loss to shifting of the office from the main building to the adjacent new office.

Shifting blues

• An RTI activist had sought details of buildings sealed by the Patiala Municipal Corporation during various drives between May and July 2020.
• “The record pertaining to sealing of various buildings, maintained by the Building Department of the Municipal Corporation, was lost during the shifting of the office,” said the assistant town planner of the Municipal Corporation.
• The branch in possession of the record had shifted to the new office space about five months ago.

The RTI activist had sought details of buildings sealed by the corporation during various drives between May and July 2020. The assistant town planner of the Municipal Corporation in response said: “The record pertaining to sealing of various buildings, maintained by the Building Department of the Municipal Corporation, was lost during the shifting of the office. Therefore, the sought information could not be provided.”

MC officials informed that the branch in possession of the record had shifted to the new office space about five months ago. “The office is set to shift again to the upper floor,” an official had said recently.

MC Joint Commissioner Avikesh Gupta was not available for comment.