Chhattisgarh government on Saturday issued a directive, including restricting the use of convoy vehicles for the chief minister, ministers and heads of state-run bodies, along with a ban on foreign travel at government expense except in unavoidable circumstances following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal to reduce fuel consumption amid the West Asia conflict.A directive issued by finance secretary Rohit Yadav said the measures have been implemented with immediate effect to ensure efficient management of financial resources and maintain discipline in public spending.According to the order, only essential vehicles should be used in convoys. Departments are also directed to ensure restrained use of government resources.The government instructed departments to initiate phased conversion of official vehicles into electric vehicles to promote EV usage. As part of fuel conservation measures, expenditure on petrol and diesel for government vehicles must be kept to a minimum. Departments have also been asked to implement vehicle pooling arrangements for officials travelling to the same destination.The directive said foreign travel of government employees at state expense will remain completely prohibited except under extremely unavoidable circumstances, for which prior approval of the CM will be mandatory.Departments are also advised to hold physical meetings preferably only once a month and encourage virtual meetings. Regular departmental review meetings are to be conducted through video conferencing.Also Read:Tamil Nadu governor cuts convoy size on PM’s appeal to reduce fuel consumptionThe government also stressed energy conservation in offices, directing that lights, fans, air-conditioners and computers must be switched off after office hours.The directive will remain in force till September 30 this year.Amid the ongoing conflict involving the US, Israel and Iran, PM Modi suggested measures such as reducing petrol and diesel consumption, using metro rail services, carpooling, increasing use of electric vehicles, using railways for parcel movement and working from home to conserve foreign exchange.