Lucknow: The previous Mayawati government in Uttar Pradesh had spent over Rs 121 crore on decorative advertisements during the last five years to showcase its programmes and achievements, the UP Legislative Council was informed Friday.

In a written reply, the state government said in 2007-08 over Rs 13 crore was spent on advertisements while in 2008-09 over Rs 20 crore were spent. Likewise, in 2009-10 over Rs 17 crore was spent while in 2010-11 the amount was Rs 33 crore.

Before facing elections, the BSP government spent the highest amount of over Rs 37 crore in 2011-12 on advertisements issued by the state information department. PTI SAB SMI