NB In Iist | Know about Heeralal Samariya becomes first Dalit person to be sworn in as Chief Information Commissioner
After becoming an IAS officer, he served as Secretary in the Ministry of Labour and Employment. He was also a Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Chemical and Fertilizers.
Total Views |
In a historical moment, Heeralal Samariya, a seasoned Information Officer with a distinguished career, has taken the helm as the Chief of the Central Information Commission (CIC), marking a historic moment as the first Dalit individual to assume this prestigious position.
President Draupadi Murmu administered the oath of office to Samariya during a ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra observed that the 2005 law on the Right to Information (RTI) will become a "dead letter" if vacancies are not filled.
The 63-year-old Samariya was chosen for the post of Chief Information Commissioner, which lay vacant since the term of YK Sinha ended on October 3. He was sworn in as the Information Commissioner in the CIC on November 7, 2020.
Who is Heeralal Samariya?
- Born on September 14, 1960, in the remote village of Pahadi in Rajasthan's Bharatpur District, Heeralal Samariya pursued a Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering with honors from Rajasthan University.
- After becoming an IAS officer, he served as Secretary in the Ministry of Labour and Employment. He was also a Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Chemical and Fertilizers.
- He has also held various critical roles, such as Commissioner in the Commercial Tax Department in Telangana, Commissioner of the Environment Department in Andhra Pradesh, and Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Chemical and Fertilizers, among others.
- After Samariya's appointment as the Chief Information Commissioner, there exists a vacancy of eight Information Commissioners. At present, there are two Information Commissioners in the Commission.
- The Commission is headed by the Chief Information Commissioner and can have a maximum of 10 Information Commissioners. A Chief Information Commissioner and Information Commissioners can hold the office till they attain 65 years of age.