Modi’s foreign visits cost Rs 74.5 crore this year

The Indian Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday informed the Rajya Sabha that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s overseas visits this year have cost the exchequer nearly Rs 74.5 crore, while also stating that India attracted US$381.8 billion in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) between April 2021 and December 2025.  

However, the Government did not attribute any portion of the investment inflows to specific foreign visits or agreements.

The information was shared by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in a written reply to questions raised by Rajya Sabha MPs Sanjay Singh and Dr V. Sivadasan.

The lawmakers had sought details of the Prime Minister’s country-wise foreign visits since 2021, the expenditure incurred on each trip, bilateral agreements signed, investment commitments made, and the FDI received as a result of those visits.

Minister of State for External Affairs Pabitra Margherita said the Government has provided year-wise and visit-wise expenditure details along with a country-wise list of Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) signed during the Prime Minister’s visits in annexures attached to the reply.

The MEA also referred to expenditure incurred during the previous Congress-led UPA Government to provide historical context. According to the ministry, a single visit by former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh to the United States in 2011 cost Rs 10.74 crore, while visits to Russia in 2013, France in 2011, and Germany in 2013 cost Rs 9.96 crore, Rs 8.33 crore, and Rs 6.02 crore, respectively.

The ministry clarified that these are actual historical figures and have not been adjusted for inflation or currency fluctuations.

On the investment front, the Government said India received a cumulative $381.8 billion in FDI between April 2021 and December 2025. It maintained that the Prime Minister’s high-level foreign engagements have played an important role in strengthening India’s bilateral, regional, and global partnerships.

According to the MEA, agreements signed during these visits have expanded cooperation across key sectors, including technology, innovation, trade and investment, defence, energy, and resilient supply chains.

The Government, however, did not provide any visit-specific assessment of investment outcomes, nor did it quantify how much of the reported FDI could be directly linked to individual overseas trips, MoUs, or investment commitments.