Prime Minister Narendra Modi has significantly reduced his convoy size, PTI reported quoting unnamed sources on Wednesday, days after Opposition parties and social media cynics targeted the PM for making an austerity call to citizens of the country and then embarking on road shows and watching an air show with fighter jets.
A downsizing in the prime minister's convoy was implemented in his recent domestic visits, official sources told PTI.
The reduction was done while maintaining essential security components as per SPG protocol. Modi's convoy size was cut in Gujarat and Assam immediately after his speech in Hyderabad, per the agency.
The agency’s sources said the prime minister also asked for electric vehicles to be included in his convoy where possible, without making new purchases.
Amid the crisis in West Asia, where the key waterway of the Strait of Hormuz is virtually paralysed, Modi had on Sunday made a push for austerity while addressing a rally organised by the Telangana BJP in Hyderabad.
The prime minister suggested reducing petrol and diesel consumption, using metro rail services in cities, carpooling, increased use of electric vehicles, utilising railway services for parcel movement, and working from home to conserve foreign exchange. He also advocated not buying gold for a year and not going on foreign trips.
Consequently, the prime minister’s announced travel plans – he is to leave on a seven-day trip to the UAE, Sweden, Netherlands, Norway and Italy on Friday – had also come in for scorn.