India’s Ministry of External Affairs said central government spending on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s foreign trips totalled Rs 557 crore 51 lakh 34 thousand 18 rupees and 56 paise from 2021 through July this year. Minister of State for External Affairs Pabitra Margherita provided the figures in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday, responding to questions from AAP MP Sanjay Singh and CPI MP V Sivadasan.

The ministry said Modi’s bilateral overseas visits between January and July this year cost Rs 74 crore 58 lakh 93 thousand 797 rupees. During that period, he visited 13 countries: Malaysia, Israel, the UAE, the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Italy, France, Slovakia, Seychelles, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand. The most expensive trip this year was his Norway visit in the second half of May, costing Rs 17 crore 46 lakh 50 thousand 390 rupees.

His February visit to Israel cost Rs 11 crore 92 lakh 25 thousand 938 rupees, according to the ministry. It said a France trip in February last year cost Rs 25 crore 59 lakh 82 thousand 902 rupees. The ministry said the figures reflected actual expenditure and did not account for inflation or changes in currency exchange rates.