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Prime minister Narendra Modi has often been in debates for his foreign trips. His trips are attacked by the opposition too and says that Modi does a lot of foreign trips and thereby spends a lot. The latest is that Modi’s foreign trips has had an expenditure of Rs 446.52 crores in five years.
Foreign ministry gave the details on March 4 in the Lok Sabha in reply to a question. Minister of state for foreign affairs V Murlidharan said this amount includes the cost on chartered flights.
According to the details submitted by Murlidharan in the year 2015-16 the trips by the PM cost Rs 121.85 crore and in the year 2016-17 it was Rs 78.52 crore. IN the year 2017-18 the expenditure was Rs 99.90 crore and in 2018-19 Rs 100.02 crore spent. The minister also informed that in the current 2019-20 year till now Rs 46.23 crore have been spent.
It may be noted that during foreign trips by the prime minister the expenditure on chartered planes, hotline expenditure, and maintenance of the flights have to be done and it usually remains high. The details presented on Wednesday did not included flight maintenance.
In the year 2016-17 it was Rs 376.67 crore in 2017-18 Rs 341.77 crore 2018-19 423.88 crore were spent. According to the foreign ministry after becoming the prime minister in 2014 Modi travelled 59 countries. The next such trip is on March 13. He will visit Belgium.
It may be noted that in December 2018 the MP of communist party of India Binoy Visham had asked this information in the Lok Sabha that who all ministers travelled with the PM. But the foreign affairs minister did not provide this information. The information about private people travelling with the PM was not provided.
This information was asked under an RTI application by digital media The Wire but the ministry did not answer to it. Though the chief information commissioner had ordered the ministry in 2018 to tell the names of government/non-government/private people who travelled with the PM in 2014-15.
