Punjab ministers' fuel bills cost state Rs 27 cr

A sum of about Rs 27 crore has been spent on fuel bills of Cabinet ministers and Chief Parliamentary secretaries (CPS) for the period between April 2012 and October 2013 in Punjab, a debt-stressed state.
The fuel bills of Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and his son Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal were highest among ministers and cost the state exchequer Rs 8.22 crore and Rs 5.90 crore respectively, according to an RTI reply by State Transport Commissioner.
The collective expenditure on car journey of 14 state Cabinet ministers was Rs 5.88 crore wherein fuel expense of Transport Minister Ajit Singh Kohar was highest at Rs 59.90 lakh, according to the RTI filed by Roopnagar-based lawyer Dinesh Chadha.

The lowest expenditure on car fuel among the ministers was of Education Minister Sikandar Singh Maluka at Rs 28.75 lakh followed by Food and Civil Supplies Minister Adaish Partap Kairon with the bill of Rs 29.70 lakh.
The expenditure on car fuel of 20 Chief Parliamentary secretaries burdened the state exchequer with a sum of Rs 7.77 crore.
Among CPSs, the fuel bill of Sarup Chand Singla was lowest at Rs 25.70 lakh while it was Rs 26.80 lakh for Navjot Kaur Sidhu, wife of Amritsar MP Navjot Sidhu.
Punjab government last year made delay in payment of employees' salary, industry's VAT refunds and clearing its fuel expenses bill, prompting Opposition Congress to demand from the Centre to declare financial emergency in the state.

Already carrying a dubious tag of "debt-stressed" state, Punjab's total outstanding debt was projected to whopping Rs 1 lakh crore by the end of current fiscal.