Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw | Photo Credit: ANI

The government doesn't see a truce in the West Asia war anytime soon, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Monday, as he appealed to citizens to make their best efforts to help preserve foreign exchange reserves.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday called for measures by citizens to overcome the challenges emerging from the war involving the US, Israel and Iran, to help the country in many ways, including judicious use of fuel and "save foreign exchange by any means."

"We are living in very turbulent times. For no fault of ours, for a war which is there between two different countries in our neighbourhood, the entire world is getting affected by it. But since the war is now still going on, and yesterday's developments, we all know that a truce is still far away, looking kind of difficult," Vaishnaw said at the CII Annual Business Summit.

He said that citizens have to play an important role in the current crisis.

"We as citizens, as our Prime Minister has asked all of us to, can reduce our expenditure on everything that requires foreign exchange to this point. In our lives, in our own ways of working, we can identify whatever we can do to preserve the foreign exchange. Simultaneously, we must also earn the foreign exchange more and more," Vaishnaw said.

Modi has appealed to citizens for judicious use of petrol and diesel, using metro rail services in cities, car pooling, maximum use of EVs, utilising railway services to send parcels and working from home to save foreign exchange.

"I request all of you to take cognizance of Honorable Prime Minister's call to the nation and within your own means, within your own enterprises, within your own businesses, try to do whatever best you can," the minister said.

Published on May 11, 2026