Information obtained through the Right To Information (RTI) Act by a resident of Belgaum has revealed that former CM B.S. Yeddyurappa and his cabinet colleagues spent a whopping Rs 43.16 crore on air travel when BSY was Chief Minister from 2008-11.
According to RTI activist Bheemappa Gadad, the information pertaining to expenses incurred by Mr Yeddyurappa and his cabinet colleagues on a series of foreign trips, has not been given by the authorities concerned due to various reasons. The information obtained by Mr Gadad reveals that H.D. Kumaraswamy who was CM from 2006-07, and his cabinet collegues spent Rs 5.30 crore on their travel. When Kumaraswamy was CM, Mr Yeddyurappa who was deputy CM in the JD(S)-BJP coalition government, had spent Rs 6000 a day to meet his travel expenses.
According to Mr Gadad, Rs 8.18 crore was spent on air travel by Mr Yeddyurappa and his cabinet colleagues in 2008-09, Rs 13.45 crore in the following fiscal, Rs 15.22 crore in 2010-11 and Rs 6.29 crore in 2011 (upto July 31 when BSY resigned as CM). Mr Gadad claimed that the government has been spending excessively on air travel and the tours and visits undertaken by ministers over the past seven years at a time when most state-sponsored projects are being neglected due to paucity of funds. The funds being spent on unwanted tours have been hampering several ongoing government projects, he said.