Baikunthpur (Chhattisgarh) [India], May 22 (ANI): Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai has said that he has reduced the size of his official convoy in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's appeal for simplicity and restraint in public life.

Addressing a programme here, the Chief Minister said that the conflict in West Asia has had a global impact, including on India, stressing the need to follow the Prime Minister's call for simplicity and restraint.

'The situation of war in West Asia has impacted the entire world, and our country as well. We must follow the call of the Prime Minister. I, too, have reduced my convoy from 16 vehicles to just 4 vehicles,' Sai told reporters on Thursday.

In a response to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's national appeal to cut down on private vehicle usage, Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini travelled from Chandigarh to Delhi by train on Thursday.

Speaking to reporters, CM Saini urged citizens to switch to public transit to mitigate future environmental and resource challenges, drawing a parallel to the country's unified fight against the COVID-19 pandemic to inspire public cooperation.

'PM Modi has appealed to the people of the country. We should cooperate. PM has said that we should bring down the usage of (private) vehicles and use public modes of commute more. We should contribute towards this. So that we can face the difficulties which might come before us in the time to come. We will overcome this together, just like we overcame Corona,' said CM.

This comes after PM Modi urged citizens to prioritise work from home, cut fuel consumption, avoid foreign travel for a year, adopt Swadeshi products, reduce cooking oil use, shift to natural farming and curb gold purchases, while addressing a gathering.

To combat the volatility of fuel prices, PM Modi urged a shift in how India moves. He requested citizens to reduce petrol and diesel consumption by using the metro and public transport wherever available, opting for carpooling when private vehicles are necessary, preferring railway transport for the movement of goods, and increasing the use of electric vehicles wherever possible.

Meanwhile, Union Ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh and JP Nadda have reduced the size of their convoys. Chief Ministers of several states, including Rekha Gupta, Yogi Adityanath, Mohan Yadav, Bhajanlal Sharma, Devendra Fadnavis and Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, with several others, have also downsized their convoys. (ANI)