PM Modi's foreign trips cost Centre Rs 350 crore since 2021
Figure excludes recent visit to the UK and Maldives, pending bills
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s foreign visits from 2021 to July 2025 have cost the exchequer Rs 362 crore, the Minister of State for External Affairs informed the Rajya Sabha on Thursday. The figure does not include expenses from his recent visits to the United Kingdom and the Maldives, nor the unsettled bills.
The Ministry of External Affairs, in a written reply to a question by TMC Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien, shared a breakdown of expenditures incurred during the Prime Minister’s overseas trips. Among the disclosed figures for 2025, Rs 25.5 crore was spent on the visit to France, Rs 16.5 crore on the United States, Rs 4.9 crore on Thailand, Rs 4.4 crore on Sri Lanka, and Rs 15.5 crore on Saudi Arabia.
The Prime Minister also visited Mauritius, Cyprus, Canada, Croatia, Ghana, Trinidad & Tobago, Argentina, Brazil, and Namibia this year, but the costs for these trips have not been included, as the bills are still under settlement.
In 2024, Modi travelled to the UAE and Qatar, with Rs 3.14 crore spent on the Qatar leg of the trip. His subsequent visit to Bhutan cost the exchequer Rs 4.5 crore. A two-day trip to Italy incurred an expenditure of Rs 14.36 crore. Visits to Austria and Russia cost Rs 4.35 crore and Rs 5.34 crore, respectively.
Of all trips listed, the France visit was the most expensive in terms of reported costs, exceeding Rs 25 crore. The Prime Minister’s 2023 visit to the United States was the second costliest, with over Rs 22 crore spent.
The MEA also provided details of publicity-related expenses, stating that over Rs 1.03 crore was spent on advertising and broadcasting the Prime Minister’s public engagements abroad. Egypt recorded the highest such expenditure at Rs 11.9 lakh, while several countries registered zero spending under this category.
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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.
