Leena Mehandale takes over as Goa CIC

Former Maharashtra bureaucrat Leena Mehandale today took over as the Chief Information Commissioner of Goa, becoming the first woman CIC of the state.

Goa Governor B V Wanchoo administered oath of secrecy to Mehandale in presence of Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar at Raj Bhavan this morning.

The post was vacant for the last one-and-half year.

Parrikar, talking to reporters after the ceremony, said the state cabinet will move to create two posts for State Information Commissioners in place of one now. "We will soon create another post and start the process to fill it," he said.

Mehandale, said that the Right to Information (RTI) Act is still in its developing stages. "Although the Act gives a tool to the common man to keep a tab on the functioning of government, it cannot be used to the fullest now," she said.