The Chandigarh administration's expenditure on tourism has come under sharp scrutiny, with local MP Manish Tewari raising serious questions about the allocation and utilization of a significant budget over the past three financial years. The issue was brought to light in the Lok Sabha on Monday, revealing figures that have sparked a demand for transparency and detailed accounting.
Substantial Budget, Partial Disclosure
According to information provided by the tourism ministry in Parliament, the total budget for Chandigarh's tourism department for the last three financial years stood at Rs 33.2 crore. Out of this substantial sum, the department reported spending Rs 11.8 crore specifically on organizing and supporting various tourism and culture-related events. This disclosure was made in response to a formal question raised by Chandigarh's Member of Parliament, Manish Tewari.
MP Manish Tewari Flags Unaccounted Funds
Expressing his astonishment at the figures, Tewari highlighted a major gap in the accounting. He pointed out that while Rs 11.84 crore was confirmed to have been paid to artists and other vendors for events, a staggering Rs 22 crore remains largely unaccounted for in the provided breakdown. The MP accused the Union government and the Chandigarh administration of conveniently avoiding a critical part of his query.
"The Union govt/Chandigarh administration conveniently ducked that part of the question that demanded a break-up of how much money was paid to which artist for which performance," Tewari stated. His original question had sought a complete detail of the total budget allocated to the Union Territory's tourism department during the three-year period.
Call for Committee-Led Investigation
In light of the incomplete information, the MP has called for a formal review. He asserted that the tourism subcommittee of the administrator's advisory committee must now step in to seek a full account of how the Rs 33.2 crore was actually spent. Furthermore, Tewari has questioned the tangible outcomes of this expenditure, asking whether there has been any tourism activity of significant note in Chandigarh that justifies such a large outlay of public funds.
This development puts the spotlight on the financial governance and transparency within the UT's tourism initiatives. The demand for a vendor- and artist-specific expenditure breakdown underscores a growing insistence on granular accountability in how public money is utilized for promoting culture and tourism.
