Health Ministry refuses info on amount spent on equipment purchase

The Union Health Ministry has refused to share the amount of money spent on equipment purchase to handle the Covid-19 pandemic in the country, stating that such data does not come under the definition of "information" to be provided under the Right to Information Act. Mumbai-based RTI activist Anil Galgali had filed an online application on the central government's portal seeking to know steps taken by it to control the spread of Covid-19, name of equipment and material purchased for the purpose and the amount spent on them.