New Delhi: Political debate has triggered after it came to light that the new government of Madhya Pradesh has spent Rs 9.25 lakh per day on the air travels of the chief minister, ministers and officials in the past year (since December 1, 2023). This was revealed as per a written reply submitted in the assembly on Tuesday.
As much as Rs 32.85 crore on air travels was spent in less than a year since the government came to power. Following the revelation, the detractors are raising question over the excessive expenditure.
Congress MLA Pratap Grewal had questioned how many air journeys have been undertaken by the CM, ministers and state officials since Dec 1, 2023, and what was the cost of these journeys. Also, how many of the air journeys were undertaken on government aircraft and how many by private aircraft?
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In response, the Madhya Pradesh government told the assembly that Chief Minister Dr Mohan Yadav, ministers, and senior officials made 666 air journeys under the aviation department using both government and private aircraft. Out of these, 428 were on rented aircraft and 238 on government-owned planes and copters. The use of private planes, hired 222 times, amounted to Rs 36.39 crore, while private helicopters were used on 97 occasions. All the journeys were performed for government purpose, and the total number of flying hours was around 760.
CM responsible for almost 90 percent of total usage
Officials of Aviation Department said that hiring private aircraft is sometimes necessary when government planes are unavailable. The Chief Minister is responsible for nearly 90 percent of the total usage, with other ministers using them only sparingly.
The heavy reliance on rented aircraft started after the state government’s C-90 plane crashed at Gwalior Airport in May 2021. The accident, caused by pilot negligence, resulted in the plane being rendered unusable. Since that accident, the state has been regularly hiring aircraft and plans to keep doing so until it gets the delivery of the new Challenger 3500 jet, worth Rs 234 crore, in 2026.
A review of the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government shows a similar record of air travel. From April 2020 to March 2023, the government spent Rs 4 lakh per hour on air travel, completing 1,639 trips during this period. During this time, the Madhya Pradesh government paid around Rs 37 crore to private aviation companies.
