Fuel efficiency meter: Fadnavis on Bullet, Meghwal in auto; who followed PM Modi call best?

Long convoys and helicopter rides for lawmakers and ministers have long been part of India’s entrenched VVIP culture.

But Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent austerity call, aimed at shielding the Indian economy from the impact of the West Asia conflict, has transformed the imagery of India’s political class to that of idealism and humility.

BJP governments across states have announced fuel-saving measures and cutbacks at various levels, including reduced convoy sizes, shifting to electric modes of transport, encouraging public conveyance, carpooling, and favouring online meetings over offline events.

This raises the question: who emerged as the most conscientious fuel saver in the political establishment?

While reducing convoy sizes has been the default initiative for most governors and chief ministers following PM Modi’s move, some indeed have gone the extra mile to save fuel and display their obedience.

From Maharashtra, the winner is state minister Nitish Rane, who walked to the Mantralaya (state secretariat) to attend a cabinet meeting as a symbolic gesture for fuel conservation. First position for zero fuel consumption and also for continuing a Gandhian way of life.

Union junior minister for social justice Ramdas Athawale should get the second position for taking the Mumbai Metro (Line 3) on May 12.

Shiv Sena leader and deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde gets third place for switching to an electric vehicle.

Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis rode a Royal Enfield Bullet from his official residence ‘Varsha’ to the Vidhan Bhavan in south Mumbai, accompanied by BJP leader and minister Ashish Shelar, to attend the swearing-in ceremony of newly elected legislative council members.

The move was projected as a response to Prime Minister Modi’s call for “small sacrifices” and austerity measures aimed at conserving fuel amid the West Asia conflict.

But the symbolism appeared contradictory. A Royal Enfield Bullet, notorious for delivering barely 25-30 kilometres per litre, hardly fits the objective of fuel conservation.

For a short seven-kilometre commute, the chief minister chose a heavyweight motorcycle better known among long-distance riders and adventure travellers for journeys across some of India’s remotest terrains.

For Haryana, chief minister Nayab Singh Saini has just stuck to reducing the convoy number, to keep a nominal respect for PM Modi’s plea. Minister Arvind Sharma deserved the first spot for riding a bicycle to the state BJP headquarters in Panchkula for an event.

A VIP or VVIP convoy includes premium SUVs like Land Rover, Toyota, and Bolero.

For instance, if a convoy covers a distance of 60 kilometres or more per day, a single SUV can use up to 7.5 litres of fuel.

Therefore, the gesture of reducing convoy sizes from ten cars to four, each VIP or VVIP will still consume (7.5 multiplied by 4) an estimated 30 litres of fuel per day, down from 75 litres of a convoy involving 10 SUVs.

Uttar Pradesh relied on cycling or walking. Senior officials followed Modi’s call by cycling and walking to offices. At Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences in Lucknow, director Radha Krishan Dhiman cycled from his residence to the institute to encourage sustainable transportation.

In Barabanki, district magistrate Ishan Pratap Singh walked from his residence to the collectorate office along with additional district magistrate Nirankar Singh.

Varanasi MLA Saurabh Srivastava reportedly began commuting by bicycle for field visits, proving that even elected representatives can survive without fuel-guzzling SUVs for a few days.

Delhi tourism minister Kapil Mishra travelled by Metro on Wednesday and promised to rely only on public transport or a single official vehicle when required. Travelling by Metro in peak Delhi heat certainly deserves at least a second-place finish, even if the air-conditioning softened the sacrifice a bit.

Bihar turned austerity into a group activity. JDU ministers Ashok Choudhary, Madan Sahni and Zama Khan were seen squeezed into the same car while heading to the secretariat. Khan even clarified that carpooling had now become part of the government’s fuel-saving strategy.

LJP (Ramvilas) minister Sanjay Kumar Singh carried cabinet colleagues Sanjay Paswan and Lakhendra Paswan in his vehicle while travelling nearly 40 kilometres to Mahua in Vaishali district. A full car, at least, justifies the fuel bill.

Union law minister Arjun Ram Meghwal perhaps deserves a special mention for taking an e-rickshaw from the railway station to his residence in Rajasthan’s Bikaner. Choosing battery power over beacon culture is a rare visual in Indian politics.

Delhi education minister Ashish Sood also boarded the Metro for an inspection visit on Tuesday, proving once again that public transport became attractive when austerity entered the political vocabulary.

At the other end of the fuel-efficiency rankings sit several governors across Karnataka, Goa, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra, whose contribution to austerity remained limited to trimming convoy sizes by half. Symbolic restraint, yes — but hardly enough to compete with bicycles, walking shoes and Metro cards.