Don't have wings, but will still fly

Flying Circus back in town -1

Yes, I am back with the Flying Circus and the flying expenses of ourmontris courtesy your tax bucks. Your Chief Minister spent Rs 13,26,144 flying mainly to New Delhi between April, 2008 and January 2010 my guess is on those frequent fire-fighting missions to stave off those seven MLA’s who seem to have an everlasting grudge against his “style” of ruling which means they won’t rest till he resigns which implies Kamat could almost permanently be airborne as his flying itinerary so far will prove. So really, one of the perks of being Goa’s CM is you get to fly frequently to Delhi and live in a 5-star hotel paid for again by your tax bucks. His to-ing and fro-ing worked out to 59 flights in 22 months at a cost of Rs 60,279 per month. Factor in the days spent in Delhi or Mumbai and the travel time and you will know how many days your Chief Minister was in the air in that short period.

2008

Digambar Kamat – (travel date) 14-16 April (place visited) Mumbai, (airfare) Rs 18,350 + (DA) Rs 442, total Rs 18,792; 18-19 April, Delhi, Rs 11,113+355, total Rs 11,468; 22-23 April, Mumbai-Delhi, Rs 15,624+483, total Rs 16,107; 29-30 April, Mumbai, Rs 10,320+355, total Rs 10,675; 01-03 May, Bangalore, Rs 7,283+702, total Rs 7,985; 09-11 May, Mumbai-Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 20,410+615, total Rs 21,025; 27-29 May, Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 19,825+578, total Rs 20,403; 31 May-01 June, Mumbai, Rs 8,100+277, total Rs 8,377; 18-19 June, Mumbai-Pune-Mumbai, Rs 17,080+190, total Rs 17,270.
01-02 July, Mumbai-Delhi, Rs 17,300+355, total Rs 17,655; 09-10 July, Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 16,067+483, total Rs 16,550. Some of his high-cost flying needs scrutiny, especially as the costs are supposedly for single return airfares. For instance, between 14-17 July he flew Delhi-Mumbai Business Class at a cost of Rs 49,468+962, total Rs 50,430. 22-24 July, Delhi, Rs 12,444+780, total Rs 13,224. The same thing applies elsewhere: 29-30 July, Mumbai-Delhi-Delhi, Rs 49,375+446, total Rs 49,821. 06 August, Mumbai, Rs 21,615, total Rs 21,605; 10-12 August, Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 26,398+537, total Rs 26,935. Ditto for 08-10 September, Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 47,371+702, total Rs 48,073; 12-14 September, Delhi, Rs 13,275+483, total Rs 13,758. The same here: 22-24 September, Delhi, Rs 36,317+615, total Rs 36,932; 12-14 October, Delhi, Rs 18,864+615, total Rs 19,479, 02-04 November, Delhi, Rs 15,762+665, total Rs 16,427; 09-10 November, Delhi, Rs 14,469+405, total 14,874; 14-15 November, Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 24,675+182, total 24,857; 21 November, Mumbai-Delhi, Rs 28,741+182, total Rs 28,923; 01 December, Mumbai, Rs 26,043+95, total Rs 26,138; 04-07 December, Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 19,429+962, total Rs 20,391; 26-27 December, Mangalore, Rs 13,660+230, total 13,890.
Also, work this one out for yourself. Kamat made four one day trips to Mumbai on August 6, 2008, on November 21, 2008 Delhi-Mumbai, on December 1, 2008 to Mumbai and July 26, 2009 to Mumbai.

Voted on swarag or earth?

You would think after being voted into power, politicians would feel indebted to the people who queued up in the scorching sun to cast their ballots. But no, they seem to think only divine intervention got them to their gaddis. But this is audacious. Even Digambar Kamat’s flights to Tirupati to pray at the Lord Venkateshwara Temple were paid by you. Between 22-23 June, 2008 he flew Mumbai-Hyderabad-Tirupati-Hyderabad at a cost of Rs 19,770+190. Total: Rs 19,960. Between 18-23 June, 2009 he took yet another Mumbai-Hyderabad-Tirupati-Hyderabad flight that cost you Rs 18,261+1,138. Total: Rs 19,399. And again between 03-07 January, 2010, this time taking the Mumbai-Shamshabad (Hyerabad’s new airport)-Tirupati-Shamshabad flight at a cost to you of Rs 33,583+1,097. Total: Rs 34,680. Curiously the Health Minister Vishwajeet Rane undertook the same pilgrimage in the first week of July, 2008 (on that later) but apparently failed to evoke Lord Venkateshwara’s blessing as he has not been able to unseat Kamat. But really, do we have to pay for this? Do the gods approve?

2009

04-08 January, Mumbai, Rs 15,380+1,222, total Rs 16,602; 07-10 February, Delhi, Rs 20,383+925, total Rs 21,308; 12-16 February, Mumbai-Calcutta (Dimapur)-Guwahati-Mumbai, Rs 37,984-635, Rs 38,619; 18-20 February, Mumbai, Rs 13,732+624, total Rs 14,356; 28 February-02 March, Delhi, Rs 18,427+780, total Rs 19,207; 13-15 March, Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 16,348+355, total Rs 16,703. Here’s an expensive Economy Class flight: 16-20 May, Mumbai-Delhi, Rs 35,478+1,003, total Rs 36,481; 21-24 May, Delhi, Rs 15,422+743, total Rs 16,165; 10-13 June, Delhi, Rs 16,415+925, total Rs 17,340; 06-07 July, Delhi, Rs 13,896+520, total Rs 14,416; 10-12 July, Mumbai, Rs 8,630+780, total Rs 9,410; 14-15 July, Mumbai-Delhi, Rs 16,398+446, total Rs 16,844; 26 July, Mumbai, Rs 8,472+95, total Rs 8,567; 15-19 August, Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 14,702+1,040, total Rs 15,742; 27-28 August, Mumbai, Rs 13,200+364, total Rs 13,564; 03-04 September, Delhi, Rs 19,383+483, total Rs 19,866; 14-15 September, Delhi, Rs 16,377+483, total Rs 16,860; 05-07 October, Mumbai-Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 23,353+578, total Rs 23,931; 08-10 October, Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 15,926+537, total Rs 16,463; 26-28 October, Mumbai-Delhi, Rs 25,411+743, total 26,154.
There is something amiss here because the cost of Kamat’s next four flights to Delhi began to progressively increase. Was someone riding shotgun with him, a supportive MLA perhaps, not entitled to limitless flying perhaps? (1) 06-07 November, Delhi, Rs 17,373+442, total Rs 17,815; (2) 09-11 November, Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 26,737+442, total Rs 27,179; (3) 16-18 November, Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 41,560+624, total Rs 42,184; (4) 04-07 December, Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 36,571+702, total 37,273; (5) 08-11 December, Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 30,696+702, total 31,398. And this lone flight on the eve of Christmas when the whole world shuts down: 24-25 December, Mumbai, Rs 17,289+442, total Rs 17,731.

2010

09-10 January, Mumbai, Rs 14,071+277, total Rs 14,348; 12-14 January, Mumbai-Delhi, Rs 38,020+702, total Rs 38,722; 20-23 January, Pune-Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 53,944+849, total Rs 54,793.
Grand Total: Rs 13,26,144.


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