by Our Correspondent in New Delhi
The Indian government has revealed that the total expenditure for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the United States in June 2023 amounted to approximately Rs 22.89 crore. According to the data shared by Minister of State for External Affairs, Pabitra Margherita, the exact expenditure incurred was Rs 22,89,68,509 (approximately USD 2.76 million or LKR 809.8 million).
This information was disclosed in response to a question raised by the Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, who had asked about the total expenditure on the Prime Minister’s foreign visits over the past three years. He specifically sought a breakdown of expenses for various categories such as hotel arrangements, community receptions, transport, and other miscellaneous costs.
The government provided a detailed tabulation of expenses on the Prime Minister’s foreign visits from May 2022 to December 2024. The data included significant visits, such as the US trip in June 2023 and the upcoming September 2024 visit to the same country, which incurred an expenditure of Rs 15,33,76,348 (about USD 1.85 million or LKR 54.16 million).
Other notable visits and their associated costs were also detailed. For instance, the Prime Minister’s visit to Japan in May 2023 incurred Rs 17,19,33,356 (around USD 2.09 million or LKR 60.68 million), while the Nepal visit in May 2022 cost Rs 80,01,483 (approximately USD 96,000 or LKR 28.27 million). The tabulated data covers over 38 visits, including travels to countries like Germany, Russia, and France.
The minister also shared historical expenditure data for the Prime Minister’s foreign visits prior to 2014. The figures included INR 10,74,27,363 (USD 1.30 million or LKR 37.90 million) for a US visit in 2011, INR 9,95,76,890 (USD 1.21 million or LKR 35.15 million) for a visit to Russia in 2013, INR 8,33,49,463 (USD 1.01 million or LKR 29.39 million) for France in 2011, and INR 6,02,23,484 (USD 732,000 or LKR 21.27 million) for Germany in 2013. These amounts were provided without adjusting for inflation or currency fluctuations.
