New Delhi, December 28: The cost of India's successful Chandrayaan-3 lunar mission was around Rs 600 crore. It may surprise you to learn that the Narendra Modi government could have raised the money for two of these missions by selling junk, such as old cars, papers, and office equipment that was condemned. According to the most recent government data, scrap has brought in around Rs 1,163 crore since October 2021, with a staggering Rs 557 crore being made during a one-month campaign in October of this year.

According to the research, since October 2021, an incredible 96 lakh physical files have been eliminated from central government offices, freeing up over 355 lakh square feet of space overall. Office hallways have been cleaned as a result, and vacant space has been used for leisure centres and other beneficial uses. Centre Earns over Rs 117-cr Revenue in 1st Two Weeks of Ongoing Swachhata Special Campaign 3.0 by Disposing Scrap.

Our (Chandrayaan-3) expedition cost about Rs 600 crore, whereas the Russian moon project, which was failed, cost Rs 16,000 crore. Hollywood films based on space missions to the moon cost more than Rs 600 crore, MoS Space, Jitendra Singh stated earlier this year.  The amount of money collected from the sale of scrap indicates just how significant and extensive the government's cleaning campaign has been. This campaign has been spearheaded by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances. After Earning Rs 1,162 Crore from Scrap Disposal, Centre Plans to Accelerate Cleanliness Drives: Jitendra Singh.

The Ministry of Railways alone brought in about Rs 225 crore of the Rs 556 crore the government made from the sale of scrap this year. The Ministry of Defence, at Rs 168 crore, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, at Rs 56 crore, and the Ministry of Coal, at Rs 34 crore, were the other top earners. According to the report, of the 164 lakh square feet of total space released this year, the largest amounts were released in the Ministry of Coal (66 lakh square feet), the Ministry of Heavy Industry (21 lakh square feet), and the Ministry of Defence (19 lakh square feet).

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 28, 2023 06:16 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).