Cut Down On Petrol, Edible Oil, Gold Purchases: PM Modi's List Of 'Don'ts' For Citizens Amid West Asia Crisis

Secunderabad: Amid the ongoing crisis in the Middle East, with no possibility of a plausible peace deal in sight, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday urged citizens to use petroleum products judiciously, and stressed on prioritising work from home, online conferences, and virtual meetings just like during the pandemic.

“We must prioritise work from home, online conferences, and virtual meetings again. We must also place a strong emphasis on saving foreign exchange, as petrol and diesel have become so expensive globally... It is our responsibility to save the foreign currency spent on purchasing petrol and diesel,” the Prime Minister emphasised in a public meeting at Secunderabad.

“During the pandemic, we developed many systems of work from home, online meetings, and video conferences, and we even became accustomed to them. Today, the demands of the times are such that if we restart these systems, it will be in the national interest,” he proposed.

Prioritise Metro, Car Pooling

The Prime Minister also spelt out the ways to limit the country's consumption of energy resources, like opting for metro transport, and car pooling in case one has to travel on road.

“In this time of global crisis, we have to make a resolution keeping duty paramount and fulfil it with complete dedication. A big resolution is to use petrol and diesel sparingly. We must curb our use of petrol and diesel. In cities with metro lines, we should decide to travel by metro only. If we must use a car, then we should try to carpool,” PM Modi said, adding, “People with electric vehicles should try to use them as much as possible.” 

No Destination Weddings, Foreign Trips

The Prime Minister also asked citizens to cut down on foreign destination weddings, taking foreign trips, as well as vacationing abroad.

"The growing culture of weddings abroad, travelling abroad, and vacationing abroad is becoming prevalent among the middle class. We must decide that during this time of crisis, we should postpone travelling abroad for at least a year," he said.

Reduce Edible Oil Use

Amid the supply line distortions owing to the West Asia crisis, the Prime Minister also requested citizens to cut down of consumption of edible oil, as the collective step might save foreign currency. India is largely dependent on exports when it comes to edible oil. PM Modi also requested farmers to reduce their dependence on chemical fertilizers, another resource on which the country is highly dependent on imports. 

"The same is true for edible oil. We have to spend foreign currency on its import. If every household reduces the use of edible oil, it is a huge contribution to patriotism. This will improve the health of the national treasury and the health of every family member. Another sector that consumes foreign currency is our agriculture. We import chemical fertilisers in large quantities from abroad... We should reduce our consumption of chemical fertilisers by half and move towards natural farming. This way, we can save foreign currency and our farms and Mother Earth," he said.

No Gold Purchase For A Year

Continuing his list of requests for the citizens, amid this geopolitical crisis, the Prime Minister also stressed on reducing gold purchases, a commodity which holds significant emotional quotient among the middle class, especially during auspicious family occasions.

"Gold purchases are another area where foreign exchange is used extensively... In the national interest, we must resolve not to purchase gold for a year, no matter how many functions we have scheduled at home," he said.

'Patriotism Goes Beyond Dying For Country'

PM Modi also gave a lecture on patriotism, saying that one needs to fight unitedly in times of crisis, and should fulfil our duties towards our country.

"But friends, when the supply chain continues to be in crisis, no matter what measures we take, the difficulties only increase. Therefore, now we must fight unitedly, keeping the country and Mother India first. We must remember that patriotism is not just about dying for the country. Living for the country and fulfilling our duties to the country is also patriotism."

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