Saturday, March 28, 2015

Rs 8.68 crore was spent on aircraft of CM, governor in 2 years

Gandhinagar:  The state government spent a hefty Rs.8.68 crore for operation and maintenance of the state government's aircraft and helicopter, mainly used by the chief minister and sometimes by the Governor, in the last two years. However, these expenses don't include those by the state government on hiring private aircraft for VVIP travel as the old plane is not used by VVIPs anymore.

The state government usually spends around Rs 17 to Rs 20 crore on hiring private aircraft services for the chief minister and other VVIPs, as the one fixed-wing aircraft and one helicopter are not sufficient. Many times the aircraft and the helicopter remain under maintenance and so private services are hired.

Saurabh Patel, state civil aviation minister, in a written response to a Congress MLA's starred question disclosed this information in the state assembly on Friday. The minister said that in last two years (till 31-12-14) a total of Rs 3.95 crore was spent on operation and maintenance of the aircraft. For the operational use and maintenance of the helicopter, the government spent Rs 4.72 crore which is more than the value of the aircraft.
28/03/15 Times of India
To Read the News in full at Source, Click the Headline