{"id":677570,"date":"2026-05-18T13:53:30","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T13:53:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/677570\/"},"modified":"2026-05-18T13:53:30","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T13:53:30","slug":"modi-urges-indians-to-work-from-home-cut-back-on-travel-amid-energy-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/677570\/","title":{"rendered":"Modi urges Indians to work from home, cut back on travel amid energy crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

An auto rickshaw driver waits for passengers in a market on May 13 in Delhi, India. As the Iran war pressures the economy, rising fuel and commodity costs continue to affect transport, retail markets, small businesses, consumer spending and international travel.Ritesh Shukla\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

A senior Indian<\/a> judge gave up his official car and security convoy last week to demonstrate what Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called a patriotic duty. Dwarka Dhish Bansal cycled to court through the streets of Jabalpur in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh after Mr. Modi appealed to the country to work from home and minimize the use of fuel amid a surge in energy<\/a> prices caused by war in the Middle East. <\/p>\n

The judge said he travelled from his residence to the courthouse by bicycle to demonstrate that even senior public officials can make small sacrifices during a national crisis. <\/p>\n

\u201cPrime Minister Narendra Modi has appealed to citizens to save fuel,\u201d Justice Bansal said. \u201cKeeping that in mind, I felt I should cycle from my home to the High Court and send a message to ordinary citizens that, wherever possible, they should also use bicycles for short distances.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust because we are High Court judges does not mean we are special,\u201d he added. \u201cEveryone should cycle whenever possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

The rupee hit record lows in recent weeks amid surging inflation caused by the collapse of oil supplies through the Strait of Hormuz, as Iran continues to choke off travel through the vital waterway to put pressure on the United States and its Persian Gulf allies. India imports more than 80 per cent of its crude oil, leaving the country especially vulnerable to global price shocks. (A related shortage of liquefied petroleum gas is forcing poorer families to resort to firewood to cook meals.) <\/p>\n

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With Brent crude climbing to more than US$109 a barrel Friday, New Delhi raised gas and diesel prices by three rupees per litre in a bid to curb consumption. <\/p>\n

Speaking at public events in Hyderabad and Vadodara last week, Mr. Modi urged Indians to embrace what he called \u201cnationally responsible\u201d lifestyle choices, comparing the \u201cduty\u201d of citizens during the energy crisis to that of soldiers in war.<\/p>\n

He said \u201cpatriotic\u201d Indians should avoid unnecessary foreign travel and stop buying gold and other foreign goods to conserve foreign exchange. The Prime Minister encouraged companies to revive work-from-home arrangements introduced during the pandemic and urged schools to conduct online classes where feasible. <\/p>\n

He also asked farmers to cut fertilizer use in half and called on commuters to rely more on public transportation, carpooling and electric vehicles to reduce fuel consumption.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe must curb our use of petrol and diesel,\u201d Mr. Modi said in Vadodara. \u201cWhenever India faced war or any major crisis, citizens fulfilled their responsibility on the government\u2019s appeal. We need to do the same now.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cEvery small and big effort matters,\u201d he added. \u201cWe must reduce unnecessary dependence on imported goods in our daily lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

Across Indian cities, some residents have already begun adjusting their routines. <\/p>\n

In Mumbai, Clavell Rodriguez, a 34-year-old sales manager, said his company had reduced in-person meetings and encouraged employees to work remotely three days a week.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have started shifting many of our meetings online,\u201d Mr. Rodriguez said. \u201cWhen the Prime Minister asks people to make sacrifices, it makes you realize the situation may become much more difficult in the coming months.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Hyderabad, Asif Farooq, who works at ICICI Bank, said he had stopped driving to work and now commutes by bus.<\/p>\n

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\u201cMany of my colleagues used to drive their own cars to the office,\u201d Mr. Farooq said. \u201cAfter Modi\u2019s appeal, most of us shifted to public transport. It saves a lot of money and makes us feel we are at least doing something to prepare for tougher times ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yet Mr. Modi\u2019s appeal has also drawn criticism.<\/p>\n

Opposition politicians and several commentators have pointed out that Mr. Modi himself recently participated in multiple political rallies and attended a large air show while urging ordinary citizens to reduce travel and consumption.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese events raise a question: While the country needs to come together to tackle such a crisis, are only common citizens expected to make sacrifices?\u201d said Priyanshi Sharma, a co-founder of media startup Peek TV. <\/p>\n

The Karnataka State Travel Operators Association warned that widespread work-from-home policies and reduced travel could damage industries still recovering from the economic shocks of the pandemic.<\/p>\n

In a statement, the association said millions of jobs tied to commuting, tourism and small transport businesses could be endangered if companies were to sharply curtail commuting and business travel.<\/p>\n

The group urged the government to focus on fuel security measures, diplomatic efforts to alleviate global energy shortages and financial support for vulnerable transport operators.<\/p>\n

Mr. Modi has drawn parallels with India\u2019s pandemic response, saying the country had overcome one of \u201cthe worst crises of the century\u201d and could also withstand the crisis caused by the war in Iran.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: An auto rickshaw driver waits for passengers in a market on May 13…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":677571,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[45,49,48,46,1008],"class_list":["post-677570","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-economy","tag-business","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-economy","tag-pleasemod"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/677570","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=677570"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/677570\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/677571"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=677570"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=677570"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=677570"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}