11.18 crores spent for a few hours during PM Modi’s Kalaburagi visit in Karnataka

Prime Minister Narendra Modi distributes title deeds to the beneficiaries in Kalaburagi district in Karnataka | Photo courtesy: @BSBommai | Twitter

On January 19, Prime Minister Narendra Modi initiated a drive to distribute "Hakku Patra" (land title deed) to over 52,000 members of the nomadic Lambani (Banjara) tribe in northern Karnataka's five districts of Kalaburgi, Bidar, Yadgiri, Raichur and Vijayapura.

Documents available with us show that in Kalaburgi alone, 11.18 crores were spent for PM Modi's program, where he symbolically distributed the title deeds to five families in Malkhed in Sedam taluk of the district. Interestingly, the exorbitant sum was spent on a program that concluded in a matter of a few hours. The excessive spending has further given credence to allegations that the Karnataka government has been squandering away public funds that are a part of the state's exchequer.

The letter written by the Kalaburagi District Collector to the Principal Secretary of the Revenue Department on January 12 | Courtesy: G Mahantesh

Before the event at Kalaburagi, the state's revenue department, which had decided to organise the rights distribution program in Yadgiri had obtained a 4(g) exemption from the finance department to spend Rs. 7 crores. Eventually, the Yadgiri funds were reallocated to be spent on the Kalaburagi event, thus bringing the total expenditure to a whopping 11.18 crores. Sources in the revenue department confirmed to us that the expense has been incurred.

We have accessed the letter written by the Kalaburagi District Collector (DC) to the Principal Secretary of the revenue department dated January 12, 2023, in which the DC had sought a 4(g) exemption for the distribution of title deeds to the newly created revenue villages for various government programs. Kalaburagi should release a grant of 11,18,57,000 crores under the account titled (2053-00-093-1-01 General Expenditure 051) to meet the expenses incurred to organise the program in the district on 19 January 2023, the document read.

Details of the expenditure incurred during the Kalaburagi program | Courtesy: G Mahantesh

Details of expenditure

3.75 crores: Main stage (German hangar - water proof), sound lighting system, installation of LED screen, flower decoration, green room, safe room, lunch counter for the beneficiaries

1.23 crores: Lunch for the people who arrive for the program.

24 lakhs: Drinking water

6.67 lakhs: Buttermilk

40 lakhs: District-wise snacks

15 lakh: VIP food arrangements

10,000: Arrangement of dry fruits

20,000: Shawls, garlands, VVIP mementos and badges

3.40 crores: Transportation of people - Kalaburagi (1090), Bidar (300), Yadgiri (140), Raichur (448), Vijaypur (104) and 500 others

1.96 lakhs: Videography and photography, invitation cards

1.5 crores: Levelling and rolling at the event venue and parking lot, murum filling, road construction, shifting of electric poles, construction of helipad etc.,

25 lakhs: Remuneration for artists

This story was first published in Kannada by The File. To read the Kannada version of the original story, pls click