India PM urges reduced fuel use amid Middle East war disruption

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday urged the people of India to cut down on petrol and diesel consumption amid supply disruptions due to the Middle East war.

India is one of few countries in the region that has not increased prices of petrol and diesel for domestic consumers or rationed supplies.

But it has increased prices of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) — a primary cooking fuel in the country — after disruptions following the US-Israeli strikes on Iran, which led to Iran’s near-total blockade of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

“We have to reduce our use of petrol and diesel. In cities with metro lines, we should try to travel by metro…If we must use a car, then we should try to car pool,” Modi said Sunday, addressing a gathering in southern Telangana state.

He added that restrictions on use were also necessary to save foreign currency spent on fuel imports.

“We must also place a strong emphasis on saving foreign exchange, as petrol and diesel have become so expensive globally.”

Modi also urged people to resume energy-saving schemes that were in place during the Covid pandemic.

“We should prioritise work from home, online conferences, and virtual meetings again,” he said.

Hardeep Singh Puri, India’s minister for petroleum and natural gas, said oil marketing companies (OMCs) had taken a hit on their revenues while ensuring “uninterrupted energy imports and supply.”

“OMCs are buying crude, gas and LPG at higher cost, but in order to protect consumers, they are selling final products at lower cost leading to massive mounting losses of upto 1,000 crore rupees (approximately $120 million) per day,” Puri said Sunday on X.

He added that losses for the government, after reducing taxes on diesel and petrol for domestic consumption, “saw revenue losses of 14,000 crore rupees (approximately $1.6 billion) in a month.”

He urged citizens to turn Modi’s “empathetic appeal” into a mass movement “to save and conserve energy.”