Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday appealed for collective participation from citizens to help the country tackle global disruptions and challenges, urging people to reduce the consumption of petroleum products and conserve foreign exchange reserves.
Addressing a public meeting in Hyderabad, the PM encouraged citizens to use public transport as much as possible, increase the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), revive Covid-era practices such as work-from-home arrangements and virtual meetings, avoid non-essential foreign travel and gold purchases for a year, and prioritise local goods, among other measures.
“Use metros wherever metros are available. Use carpooling to go to places, and use the Railways if you have to transport goods. All of this will reduce dependency on petrol and diesel, and thereby cut the dependence on foreign currency,” he said.
Referring to the impact of global conflicts, particularly the crisis in West Asia, Modi said, “We have to take resolutions, keeping the country above all else.”
Recalling measures adopted during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Prime Minister said, “We have developed work from home, virtual meetings, video conferencing and many other methods during corona. We got habituated to it. The need of the hour is to resume those methods.”
Stressing the importance of conserving foreign exchange, Modi said, “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 also urged citizens to avoid purchasing gold during festivals for one year.
The PM further appealed to people to reduce the use of cooking oil. “I have been saying, reduce the use of cooking oil by 10%. This will not only help the nation during these times but also improve the health of your family,” Modi said.
Emphasising self-reliance, Modi remarked, “Make a list of things which you use daily and find out what is foreign.” Clarifying that he was not asking people to discard foreign-made products, he added, “But efforts should be on to build self-reliance as soon as possible.” He noted that he had also promoted the “vocal for local” campaign during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Prime Minister also called for reducing dependence on chemical fertilisers and promoting natural farming practices to make the country more self-reliant.