Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday reiterated his call for austerity measures, urging people to cut fuel consumption, use public transport and electric vehicles more frequently, and defer gold purchases amid disruptions caused by the West Asia crisis.
Addressing a gathering in Vadodara after inaugurating the Sardar Dham Hostel built by the Patidar community, Modi also asked citizens to opt for work from home wherever possible and reduce foreign travel.
"The West Asia crisis is one of the worst in the decade; just as we overcame the COVID-19 pandemic, we will come out of this also," he asserted.
Modi noted citizens had always fulfilled their responsibilities whenever the country faced war or any other major crisis. "Whenever India faced war or any other major crisis, citizens fulfilled their responsibilities upon the government's appeal; we need to do the same today," the PM told the gathering.
The prime minister stressed the need for reduced imports -- India heavily relies on West Asia for crude oil and LPG -- and avoid unnecessary expenditure involving foreign currency.
"We must make every effort to reduce the use of imported products and avoid personal activities that involve spending foreign currency," Modi maintained.
Calling for fuel conservation measures, he urged people to reduce fuel consumption and shift to public transport or electric vehicles.
He appealed to citizens to defer gold buying in view of the prevailing global situation as a significant amount of foreign exchange goes into importing the precious metal.
Modi had spoken about these austerity measures for the first time in the backdrop of the West Asia crisis while speaking at an event in Telangana on Sunday and reiterated them in Gujarat a day later.