States » EastPosted at: Oct 3 2026 1:18PM


CAG flags Odisha govt's aircraft, helicopter hiring expenditure

Bhubaneswar, Oct 3(UNI) The Odisha government incurred Rs 8.21 crore on hiring chartered aircraft and helicopters despite having substantial unutilised flying hours under an existing air-services contract, the CAG has found.
The audit, covering April 2019 to March 2024, also flagged the selection of OSS Air Management Pvt Ltd as the State's private air-services provider, terming the process non-transparent. The government selected the operator despite there being only a single bidder and, according to the audit, failed to obtain the most competitive market rates. The contract was subsequently extended several times, up to August 2024.
Between January 2019 and November 2023, the government hired chartered aircraft on 22 occasions for long-distance inter-State travel, incurring Rs 6.91 crore. This was despite 751.34 flying hours remaining unutilised under the existing contract during the period.
It also hired a helicopter from the same operator for 100.90 flying hours on 29 occasions between September 5, 2019 and March 21, 2023, spending Rs 1.30 crore. The CAG noted that 566.44 committed aircraft flying hours remained unutilised during this period, which could have been used instead of the helicopter services, potentially avoiding the expenditure.
The audit has thus pointed to gaps in the government's planning and utilisation of contracted air services, besides raising concerns over the transparency of the operator-selection process.UNI MK AAB
Tags: #CAG flags Odisha govt's aircraft# helicopter hiring expenditure
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