Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Tuesday reduced the number of vehicles in his cavalcade until further orders, responding to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for austerity measures, including reducing fuel consumption, an official said.
In a cabinet meeting on Monday, Yadav appealed to members of the Council of Ministers to reduce petrol and diesel consumption in the national interest and batted for the use of public transport, an official said.
As part of the austerity measures to be in force until further notice, the Chief Minister’s cavalcade will consist of only eight vehicles instead of 13 earlier. No vehicle rallies will be organised during his visits, the official said.
The decision came after the chief minister, during a state cabinet meeting on Monday, urged ministers to reduce petrol and diesel consumption in the national interest and encourage the use of public transport in view of the prevailing global situation. The Madhya Pradesh government said it would implement the Prime Minister’s appeal seriously and has issued necessary instructions in this regard.
The state government has also directed all ministers to use the minimum possible number of vehicles during official travel. Newly appointed office bearers of corporations and boards have been instructed to assume charge in a simple manner without organising vehicle rallies.
Dr Yadav said that, in line with Prime Minister Modi’s suggestions, Madhya Pradesh would adopt austerity measures in government functioning. Ministers, office bearers of corporations and boards, and citizens have been urged to minimise the use of vehicles, prefer public transport, and avoid unnecessary fuel consumption.
PM Modi’s appeal on energy conservation
The move follows Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal made on Sunday during a BJP rally in Telangana, where he called upon citizens to help the country tackle challenges arising out of the global conflict situation.
Emphasising that the Centre was trying to protect people from the adverse effects of war, PM Modi suggested several measures for conserving energy and saving foreign exchange. These included judicious use of petrol and diesel, using metro rail services in cities, carpooling, maximum use of electric vehicles, sending parcels through railway services and encouraging work from home.
The Prime Minister noted that petrol and fertiliser prices had increased significantly due to the war. He said that pressure on global supply chains was creating difficulties despite various government efforts to overcome the crisis.
PM Modi also appealed to citizens to reduce the consumption of edible oil, minimise the use of chemical fertilisers, promote natural farming and encourage the use of swadeshi products to help save foreign exchange and make the country self-reliant.
