Venkatesh Nayak is the Programme Coordinator at Access to Information Programme, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative. He is one of the most crucial voices for RTI in the country.

I spoke to him about his journey as an RTI activist and the challenges he faces along the way. This is the first part of the interview.

Question - What got you interested in the field of RTI?

Honestly speaking, I did not get into the field of RTI-related work out of any great passion. I had been associated with the organisation- Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI), New Delhi for four years from mid-2000 doing other kinds of research and advocacy tasks relating to human rights. Mid-2004, CHRI's management decided to promote me and assign me higher responsibilities as a senior staffer in charge of its RTI programme. I took up the assignment out of sheer professional commitment to my organisation. However, as I equipped myself with the requisite knowledge of the concept, philosophy and practice of RTI not only based on India's hitherto experience of implementing such laws at the State level but also the experience of Commonwealth and other countries abroad in implementing such laws, I woke up to the potential of RTI as a game changer in our incomplete democracy.

To be continued…