A recent report has revealed that the Civil Aviation Authority had accumulated billions of rupees under ‘security charges’ from domestic and foreign travelers.

According to media reports, the Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) took notice of the issue, declared the charges unjustified and directed the aviation authority to deposit the money into the Consolidation Fund.

According to the report, the CAA had so far accumulated nearly Rs. 15 billion from passengers during the last two fiscal years without any prior permission from the federal cabinet or Aviation Division. The aviation watchdog generated Rs. 6.97 billion in 2016-17 and another Rs. 7.83 billion in 2017-18.

CAA currently charges as much as $10 from international passengers while Rs. 100 from local travelers regardless of what flight they travel from.

The AGP said that all security-related matters on national airports fall under Airport Security Force (ASF) which receives its budget from the government. It was recommended that legal action should be taken against the responsible CAA officials.

Responding to the report, Aviation Division Senior Joint Secretary Abdul Sattar Khokar said that the authority was receiving the charges on behalf of Aviation Division; since it was a subordinate department and the division could not collect it directly.

Via: Express