Madhya Pradesh Spends ₹21 Lakh Daily on Private Aircraft Amid Soaring Debt

The Madhya Pradesh government is spending an astonishing ₹21 lakh per day on hired aircraft and helicopters, according to official data tabled in the ongoing Assembly session. The revelation, made in response to questions by Congress MLAs Pratap Grewal and Pankaj Upadhyay, has triggered sharp criticism amid the state’s spiralling debt burden, which now stands at ₹4.64 lakh crore — a 16-fold increase in two decades — with annual interest payments alone consuming ₹27,000 crore.

Documents placed before the House reveal that between January 2021 and November 2025, the state incurred ₹290 crore on aircraft and helicopter rentals from private operators. Of this, a staggering ₹90.7 crore was spent in the first eleven months of 2025 — the highest annual expenditure ever recorded. From January 2024 to November 2025, the government shelled out ₹143 crore, translating to an average of ₹6.2 crore per month or approximately ₹20-21 lakh daily.

In stark contrast, the daily average expenditure during the preceding three years (2021-2023) hovered around ₹13-14 lakh. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav confirmed that annual aircraft rental costs, which stood at a modest ₹1.63 crore in 2019, ballooned to ₹90.7 crore in 2025. The surge followed a 20-30% hike in rental rates approved in 2023, justified by the government on grounds of post-COVID tourism recovery, rising fuel prices, supply-chain disruptions, and heightened demand ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

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Hourly rates for fixed-wing aircraft jumped from ₹4.45 lakh in 2022-23 to ₹5.70 lakh in 2024, while certain helicopter categories now command up to ₹5.29 lakh per hour. The steep escalation has coincided with the near-total collapse of the state’s own aviation fleet: the government’s lone fixed-wing aircraft has remained grounded since crashing in May 2021, and only one helicopter is currently operational, forcing near-complete dependence on private vendors.

Opposition leaders have accused the Mohan Yadav government of fiscal indiscipline, questioning why the crashed aircraft has not been repaired or replaced in over four years despite mounting rental bills. With interest payments already straining the exchequer, the daily ₹21-lakh aviation expenditure has intensified calls for greater transparency and accountability in the management of Madhya Pradesh’s public finances.

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