The finance ministry, on Monday, has directed all public sector banks, insurance companies, and financial institutions to implement austerity measures, including switching to electric vehicles (EVs), curtailing foreign travel, and shifting to video conferencing for meetings, as the government moves to reduce expenditure and protect the country's financial system from economic instability due to the West Asia war.
“All organisations may aim at replacing the petrol and diesel cars hired by them in their head offices and branch offices with electric cars as far as possible,” according to an official circular of the department of financial services (DFS) reviewed by Mint.
Earlier this month Prime Minister Narendra Modi had made seven big appeals, austerity measures so to speak, to cushion India from the economic uncertainties arising from the prolonged West Asia war. These included conserving petrol and diesel by using public transport and metro; avoiding purchasing gold for a year, and restricting foreign travel to conserve forex.
"It is time for us to use petrol, diesel and gas with great care,” Modi said on Sunday while inaugurating projects in Hyderabad, Telangana. “We must make efforts to use only as much as is needed to save foreign currency and reduce the adverse effects of the war,” he added.
An email sent to the finance ministry for an immediate response remained unanswered till the time of going to press.
“Foreign travel by chairpersons/managing directors & CEOs (chief executive officers)/Whole-Time Directors/Whole-Time Members of PSBs (Public Sector Banks), RRBs (Regional Rural Banks), PSICs (Public Sector Insurance Companies) and PSFIs (Public Sector Financial Institutions) may be kept below the prescribed limits as per the respective extant guidelines, and such engagements may, as far as possible, be attended through video conferencing,” the circular stated.
Government-wide austerity measures
"We have taken 12 EVs one month back, and we have decided that all new vehicles in the bank will be EVs to all major locations in the country," Punjab National Bank MD & CEO Ashok Chandra told Mint.
Existing fleets should be progressively transitioned to EVs in a phased manner.
“The following austerity measures shall be implemented with immediate effect by all Public Sector Banks, Regional Rural Banks, Public Sector Insurance Companies and Public Sector Financial Institutions, under the Department of Financial Services,” the circular said.
The employee strength of PSBs rose 0.22% year-on-year (y-o-y) to 757,641 at the end of 31 March 2025 from 756,015 in FY24. The overall headcount in the banking system rose to 18,08,587 from 17,87,566 in FY24.
Earlier, the Supreme Court of India introduced a set of fuel-saving measures, including virtual hearings on miscellaneous days, car-pooling arrangements among judges, and work-from-home (WFH) provisions for registry staff.
In a circular issued by secretary general Bharat Parashar, the apex court stated that cases listed on miscellaneous days—Mondays, Fridays, or any other days designated as miscellaneous—along with matters taken up during partial working days, would be heard exclusively through video conferencing until further orders.
The Supreme Court further said that its judges had unanimously agreed to promote car-pooling among themselves to ensure more efficient fuel usage. As part of the measures, the apex court has also allowed up to 50% of staff in each branch or section of the registry to work from home for up to 2 days a week.