After receiving a number of complaints about elected representatives misusing the free or concessional transport facility in Delhi, the Karnataka government has installed GPS in all government cars.
This follows an order from Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, sources told DH.
Karnataka Bhavan has around 20 cars to provide transport facility to ministers, MPs and top officials for official work. For MPs, pickup and drop from the airport to their house or Parliament is provided free of cost.
For ministers and officials, free transport for official work is provided only within Delhi. But for MLAs, the facility is provided for official work within Delhi at Rs 10 a km.
However, the government has received a number of complaints about MPs and MLAs not only using cars for personal work for the whole day but also for family outings. Some MPs were also demanding free transport despite owning cars, said a CMO official.
Though Parliament provides transport facility to MPs, most Karnataka MPs prefer the state government’s cars. Karnataka is probably the only state providing free transport to its MPs in Delhi at the taxpayers’ cost. Recently, a newly elected MP created a scene when he was denied four cars for him and his family. He even threatened officials.
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