PM Modi's Austerity Call: Why Citizens Asked to Cut Gold, Fuel Use And WFH

Global volatility, surging crude oil prices and the prolonged blockade of the Strait of Hormuz are now beginning to directly influence India's economic strategy. Against this backdrop, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday made an unusual public appeal asking citizens to reduce petrol and diesel consumption, avoid non-essential gold purchases and postpone foreign travel as India battles the economic fallout of the ongoing West Asia crisis.

Addressing a gathering in Hyderabad, Modi framed the appeal as an act of "economic patriotism" during a period of global uncertainty and supply-chain disruption.