Fat pay cheques for ministers, farmers penniless: RTI activist Bheemappa Gadad

BELAGAVI: The state government has released Rs 13.80 crores as salary and perks of ministers, excluding Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, over the last two years.

RTI activist Bheemappa Gadad, who disclosed all details to the media here on Wednesday, alleged “The ministers have gone out of the way to claim huge allowances. If the flow of public money from the state exchequer continues in this way, the government will end up paying more than Rs 40 crores as allowances to ministers by the end of the government’s term in office.”

Quoting information gathered through a RTI application, he said urban development minister Vinaykumar Sorke claimed Rs 79.42 lakhs as salary and allowances, the highest by any minister during the last two years, followed by Baburao Chinchansur at Rs 76.29 lakhs, U.T. Khader at Rs 74 lakhs, and Ramanath Rai at Rs 71 lakhs. Revenue minister V Srinivas Prasad figured at the bottom of the list at Rs 22 lakhs.

Mr Gadad said the ministers were drawing attractive salary at a time when farmers were ending their lives. “The government has failed to ensure payment of fair price for farmers produce nor was it able to ensure payment of arrears of cane sugarcane growers following default by sugar factories,” he added.