NEW DELHI: It is not just foreign minister S M Krishna and his MoS Shashi Tharoor who are running bills in hotels.
Though the ministers said they were footing their bills, newly-elected MPs have run up expenses amounting to Rs 3.71 crore for their stay in Samrat Hotel in the past three months alone. And in their case it is the government making the payments.
In response to an RTI query filed by activist Subhash Chandra Agarwal, government-owned ITDC has admitted that between May and July 2009, about 74 MPs stayed at the hotel.
Their room rent alone totalled Rs 3.71 crore. The tab will be picked up by the directorate of estates, urban development ministry, according to the hospitality major.
Other expenses like food and perks including gymnasium, are additional and must be paid by the MP. The off-season tariff for a deluxe or super-deluxe room in Samrat is pegged at Rs 8,000-9,000 but the MPs have been given a discounted rate of Rs 6,000 per room per night.
Incidentally, the move to accommodate MPs in state-run hotels has been one of the primary reasons why ITDC-run properties have traditionally been incurring losses. Despite the fact that one arm of the government must pay for the other, blocking over 70 of the 255 rooms in a hotel ensures that the deficit continues.
When asked why MPs continued to stay in hotels, Lok Sabha house committee chairman Jai Prakash Agarwal said, "We have completed the allotment process. Sometimes there is a delay in the MPs shifting because the previous occupant has not vacated the flat or the CPWD has been tasked with some repair and maintenance."
The situation is not very different at the Hotel Ashok and Janpath either. Ex-MPs Govinda, Dharmendra have contributed to an outstanding bill of Rs 1.3 crore.
Though the ministers said they were footing their bills, newly-elected MPs have run up expenses amounting to Rs 3.71 crore for their stay in Samrat Hotel in the past three months alone. And in their case it is the government making the payments.
In response to an RTI query filed by activist Subhash Chandra Agarwal, government-owned ITDC has admitted that between May and July 2009, about 74 MPs stayed at the hotel.
Their room rent alone totalled Rs 3.71 crore. The tab will be picked up by the directorate of estates, urban development ministry, according to the hospitality major.
Other expenses like food and perks including gymnasium, are additional and must be paid by the MP. The off-season tariff for a deluxe or super-deluxe room in Samrat is pegged at Rs 8,000-9,000 but the MPs have been given a discounted rate of Rs 6,000 per room per night.
Incidentally, the move to accommodate MPs in state-run hotels has been one of the primary reasons why ITDC-run properties have traditionally been incurring losses. Despite the fact that one arm of the government must pay for the other, blocking over 70 of the 255 rooms in a hotel ensures that the deficit continues.
When asked why MPs continued to stay in hotels, Lok Sabha house committee chairman Jai Prakash Agarwal said, "We have completed the allotment process. Sometimes there is a delay in the MPs shifting because the previous occupant has not vacated the flat or the CPWD has been tasked with some repair and maintenance."
The situation is not very different at the Hotel Ashok and Janpath either. Ex-MPs Govinda, Dharmendra have contributed to an outstanding bill of Rs 1.3 crore.
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