A minister will now be able to take his or her friend, companion or relative on flights free of cost.
A bill introduced today in the Lok Sabha seeks to extend this facility of free air travel, earlier restricted to family members, to companions or relatives of ministers.
The Salaries and Allowances of Ministers (Amendment) Bill, introduced by home minister P. Chidambaram, allows ministers to take along “any number of companions or relatives” by air at the same rates at which travelling allowances were payable to them and their families.
This facility was available to the MPs but not to ministers, and the government has now tried to correct the discrepancy.
The draft bill says: “A minister shall be entitled to an amount equal to the fare for a single journey performed by him, during each year, within India, either alone or along with spouse or legitimate or step children, residing with and wholly dependent on him, or any number of companions or relatives, at the same rates at which travelling allowances is payable to such minister, subject to a maximum of 48 such fares per year.”