Hyderabad: As the election campaign for the upcoming Telangana assembly elections intensifies, political parties have turned to helicopters for veteran leaders thereby putting burden on the government exchequer. As campaigning for the assembly elections in the state scheduled from Nov 3-5 has gained momentum, the ruling party Bharat Rashtra Samithi as well as national parties such as Congress and BJP are using helicopters to carry out fast and extensive campaigning this time.
While six helicopters are already being used, it seems likely that four or five more will be added when the campaign reaches its final stage. It can abe recalled that five helicopters were used in the last election. However, at that time, they were used only at the level of Chief Ministers, Party Presidents, and Union Ministers during elections.
This year around, ministers and senior leaders are also turning to the high end rides to avoid being stuck in gridlocks of traffic. Official sources said that the ruling BRS has already rented two helicopters for two months for the election campaigning. Both the Congress and the BJP are renting two helicopters to suit their campaign needs.
During the 2014 and 2018 elections, Chief Minister KCR has participated in meetings in more than 100 areas. Following the same pattern this year, he has already visited five constituencies in three days thanks to helicopters. On the other hand, the party's executive president, Minister KT Rama Rao, and Minister Harish Rao are also attending the meetings through helicopters.
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BRS has provided this facility to other ministers and chief leaders to participate in the campaign. IUnion Home Minister Amit Shah along with other Union Ministers visited the state frequently in helicopters after the release of the schedule. PCC president Revanth Reddy and Congress leaders from other states are not behind in carrying out extensive campaigning.
Officials said that as there are no known helicopter rental companies in the state, political parties are contacting companies in Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Delhi to hire them. Sources said that single-engine helicopter costs Rs 1.5 lakh per hour. It is Rs 2.75 lakh per hour for the double engine helicopters. Even if the rental prices are expensive, the parties are not holding back on the cost to win the elections which is burdening the government exchequer.
The permission of the Central Election Commission is necessary for the use of helicopters during elections. The political parties should submit the details of the rental company, pilots, etc before the use of helicopters. The permission of the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is also mandatory for the use of helicopters for the campaigning.
The State Election Commission supervises with the approval of the Central Election Commission for the use of helicopters. Only party presidents, central ministers, and star campaigners identified by the Election Commission are allowed to use helicopters. This list is to be submitted by the political parties to the Election Commission.
The Election Commission also monitors helicopter fares and if any election campaign is conducted without a candidate in any constituency, the party has to bear the cost.
