Nitish Kumar’s yatras are proving costly for the state exchequer, reports Sanjay Upadhyay
Unbeknownst to the world outside, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is in the process of carving a new avatar for himself – the avatar of a yatri or a traveller who undertakes visits to further a cause. It may well be true that the credit of popularising political yatras goes to BJP veteran LK Advani, but its most modern incarnation is this rising backward leader with national aspirations.
In the recent past, Nitish Kumar has headed a number of such yatras or travels to mobilize public opinion. There have been Viswas Yatras, Vikas Yatras, Seva Yatras and Adhikar Yatras. Just recently he finished a similar baptising mission to Valmikinagar and is slated to leave soon for another destination.
Like the ancient Magadhan king chalking out his plans to see firsthand the situation in his countryside, Nitish is doing it with gusto. There can scarcely be an eyebrow raised if a politician uses these vote catching measures in a democracy before impending General Elections; it becomes quite another matter if party work is being conducted at the expense of the state exchequer, because that is precisely what is happening in Bihar.
Naturally, if a chief minister travels anywhere in the state, he cannot do so without a jumbo team of bureaucrats who accompany him along with their rather steep expenses. Traditional circuit houses, once the mainstay of travelling officials, have given way to swanky hotels. Add to it a fairly lavish entertainment allowance that the babudom believes it is their birthright.
Some details with TSI obtained through an RTI reveal an interesting picture. In Begusarai district during the CM’s Viswas and Vikas Yatra, the district administration coughed up upwards of Rs 3.33 lakh; the district administration of Khagaria spend Rs 2.82 lakhs while in contrast, the Muzzafarpur district administration put out Rs 31.96 lakhs by way of expenses. In the course of the CM’s Seva Yatra in Banka, the total amount spent was Rs 21.22 lakhs.
According to RTI information, Nitish’s Vikas Yatra in Bhagalpur cost Rs 67, 751; the money spend on his Viswas Yatra in the same district had gone up to Rs 3.33 lakhs but the Seva Yatra to the same place took the cake: Rs 21.69 lakhs!
RTI information reveals the same pattern. In Purnea, for instance, the Vikas Yatra cost Rs 6. 74 lakhs, the Viswas Yatra Rs 2.14 lakhs but on the Seva Yatra, the district administration spent over Rs 10 lakhs.
There are other interesting tit bits that RTI replies reveal. In Muzzafarpur, officials ordered a TV on rent for a whopping Rs 53,000! In a flat three days there, the official entourage including officials, aides and security detail had gobbled up food worth close to Rs 9.90 lakhs. On an earlier Viswas Yatra to Araria, a modest Rs 90,000 had been spend during the course of a single day.
Presumably, in an effort to restore working order, Rs 1.45 lakh was spent on repairing furniture at a guest house and a new sofa set worth Rs 1.7 lakhs installed for visiting dignitaries’ in Muzaffarpur. Over and above, another Rs 2.6 lakhs was splurged on refreshment and lodging.
The opposition naturally sees in this an opportunity to attack a CM who is generally the toast of Bihar – and even of the country – as his recent anti-Narendra Modi stand has shown. Some activists allege that MNREGS money has been used during such trips. The charges have gathered momentum after a reply in the affirmative was given by the district rural development authority, Muzaffarpur, when asked if MNREGS money had been spent during the CM’s Yatra. Later, the department told this magazine that the reply ``was a clerical error’’ and that it had since then been rectified.
Nonetheless RJD MP, Ram Kripal Yadav has demanded a high-level probe into the alleged use of MNREGA funds. “There should be intensive review of all Yatras done by the CM. This is a case of embezzlement. These are Mewa Yatras (just deserts),” he says.
Unbeknownst to the world outside, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is in the process of carving a new avatar for himself – the avatar of a yatri or a traveller who undertakes visits to further a cause. It may well be true that the credit of popularising political yatras goes to BJP veteran LK Advani, but its most modern incarnation is this rising backward leader with national aspirations.
In the recent past, Nitish Kumar has headed a number of such yatras or travels to mobilize public opinion. There have been Viswas Yatras, Vikas Yatras, Seva Yatras and Adhikar Yatras. Just recently he finished a similar baptising mission to Valmikinagar and is slated to leave soon for another destination.
Like the ancient Magadhan king chalking out his plans to see firsthand the situation in his countryside, Nitish is doing it with gusto. There can scarcely be an eyebrow raised if a politician uses these vote catching measures in a democracy before impending General Elections; it becomes quite another matter if party work is being conducted at the expense of the state exchequer, because that is precisely what is happening in Bihar.
Naturally, if a chief minister travels anywhere in the state, he cannot do so without a jumbo team of bureaucrats who accompany him along with their rather steep expenses. Traditional circuit houses, once the mainstay of travelling officials, have given way to swanky hotels. Add to it a fairly lavish entertainment allowance that the babudom believes it is their birthright.
Some details with TSI obtained through an RTI reveal an interesting picture. In Begusarai district during the CM’s Viswas and Vikas Yatra, the district administration coughed up upwards of Rs 3.33 lakh; the district administration of Khagaria spend Rs 2.82 lakhs while in contrast, the Muzzafarpur district administration put out Rs 31.96 lakhs by way of expenses. In the course of the CM’s Seva Yatra in Banka, the total amount spent was Rs 21.22 lakhs.
According to RTI information, Nitish’s Vikas Yatra in Bhagalpur cost Rs 67, 751; the money spend on his Viswas Yatra in the same district had gone up to Rs 3.33 lakhs but the Seva Yatra to the same place took the cake: Rs 21.69 lakhs!
RTI information reveals the same pattern. In Purnea, for instance, the Vikas Yatra cost Rs 6. 74 lakhs, the Viswas Yatra Rs 2.14 lakhs but on the Seva Yatra, the district administration spent over Rs 10 lakhs.
There are other interesting tit bits that RTI replies reveal. In Muzzafarpur, officials ordered a TV on rent for a whopping Rs 53,000! In a flat three days there, the official entourage including officials, aides and security detail had gobbled up food worth close to Rs 9.90 lakhs. On an earlier Viswas Yatra to Araria, a modest Rs 90,000 had been spend during the course of a single day.
Presumably, in an effort to restore working order, Rs 1.45 lakh was spent on repairing furniture at a guest house and a new sofa set worth Rs 1.7 lakhs installed for visiting dignitaries’ in Muzaffarpur. Over and above, another Rs 2.6 lakhs was splurged on refreshment and lodging.
The opposition naturally sees in this an opportunity to attack a CM who is generally the toast of Bihar – and even of the country – as his recent anti-Narendra Modi stand has shown. Some activists allege that MNREGS money has been used during such trips. The charges have gathered momentum after a reply in the affirmative was given by the district rural development authority, Muzaffarpur, when asked if MNREGS money had been spent during the CM’s Yatra. Later, the department told this magazine that the reply ``was a clerical error’’ and that it had since then been rectified.
Nonetheless RJD MP, Ram Kripal Yadav has demanded a high-level probe into the alleged use of MNREGA funds. “There should be intensive review of all Yatras done by the CM. This is a case of embezzlement. These are Mewa Yatras (just deserts),” he says.
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