Anna campaign cost Rs 31 lakh

Moved by Anna Hazare’s campaign against corruption, corporate houses, various social and religious organisations and individuals liberally donated the organization, India Against Corruption (IAC), to the tune of around Rs 1 core out of which it spent Rs 31 lakh.
IAC got a total of Rs 85 lakh (Rs 85,75,469) through cheques, cash and funds transfer from various organizations, corporate houses and individuals for launching the campaign to move the Lokpal Bill. And donations are still floating in, say officials.
And out of this, the IAC spent Rs 9,61,578 on tentage and public address system at the Jantar Mantar, the venue for the campaign that caught world-wide attention from April 5 to 9.
Transporting volunteers and worker for the agitation in taxis and private cars, cost the IAC nearly Rs 4,61,588.
One of the biggest support, the IAC got for the campaign was through the internet. Nearly 50,000 people had expressed support through the Internet and the IAC website was the hub of online activity. The website and internet cost Rs 8,93,938. For the entire printing material including pamphlets and banners, the campaigners have paid Rs 7,32,624.
Interestingly, the lowest expenditure for the campaign was towards food and beverages, as the agitation was a hunger strike. It just worked to Rs 81,751.
The costing admits Ashwati Muralidharan, spokesperson of the IAC which has its head office in Kaushambi in Ghaziabad, is not only for the five-day agitation at Jantar Mantar but from a period from January to March.
However, former IPS Kiran Bedi said the four main movers – Arvind Kejriwal, Agnivesh besides Bedi and Hazare had extensively toured India for five months preceding the New Delhi fast unto death. “We have traveled throughout the country for five months and attended hundreds of seminars to explain our viewpoints. It is because of the extensive touring that we have got such support.”
The expenditure however, does not include three-month expenditure of the tours of the four activists.
According to sources, the money involved could be much more as few corporate houses and even politicians had funded many activists and actors to stand up for the cause. Many Bollywood personalities had flown from Mumbai to Delhi to express their solidarity for the campaign.