Over Rs 2,021 crore spent on PM Modi's foreign travel since 2014, says Government
New Delhi, Dec 28: An expenditure of over Rs 2,021 crore was incurred on chartered flights, maintenance of aircraft and hotline facilities during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visits to foreign countries since June 2014, according to the government.
Replying to queries on the issue in Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for External Affairs V K Singh also listed the countries visited by the prime minister between 2014 and 2018 that now figure among the top 10 countries from where India has received the maximum FDI inflows.
The Foreign Direct Investments grew from USD 30,930.5 million in 2014, to USD 43478.27 million in 2017, the minister said.
According to the data provided by the minister, an expenditure of over Rs 1,346 crore was incurred on chartered flights, maintenance of aircraft and hotline facilities during Manmohan Singh's foreign visits from 2009-10 till 2013-14 during UPA-II.
The details were shared by Singh in reply to questions on official foreign tours of Manmohan Singh during his second term as prime minister from 2009 to 2014 and of Modi since 2014.
According to the data, a total of Rs 1,583.18 crore was spent on maintenance of the prime minister's aircraft and Rs 429.25 crore on chartered flights during the period between June 15, 2014 and December 3, 2018. The total expenditure on hotline was Rs 9.11 crore.
Modi visited over 55 countries in 48 foreign trips since taking over as prime minister in May 2014. He made multiple visits to some countries.
The details provided by V K Singh did not include the expenditure on hotline facilities during Modi's foreign visits in 2017-18 and 2018-19.
The cost for chartered flights to overseas destinations in 2014-15 was Rs 93.76 crore, while in 2015-16, it was Rs 117.89 crore. In 2016-17, the cost was Rs 76.27 crore and in 2017-18, the expense on chartered flight was Rs 99.32 crore.
The cost for chartered flights to overseas destinations in 2018-19 till December 3 has been Rs 42.01 crore.
To a question on the details of investment received from the countries visited by Modi, Singh listed the countries visited by the prime minister between 2014 and 2018 that now figure among the top 10 countries from where India has received the maximum FDI inflows.
The cumulative FDI inflows between 2014 and June 2018 stood at USD 136,077.75 million, compared to USD 81,843.71 million recorded cumulatively for the years between 2011 and 2014, the minister said.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
