Work From Home (WFH), once an alien concept for much of the world, became an overnight reality during Covid to keep the wheels of economies spinning through the lockdown.
As the pandemic eased, many companies returned to the traditional five-day office model, while others adopted hybrid arrangements and debated whether to continue them. For some firms, however, WFH became the norm, and the debate around it gradually faded.
That changed after Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday urged Indians to consider working from home.
This time, it was not a virus threatening to bring the world to a standstill, but a growing scarcity of the lifeblood of economies — natural gas and oil.
The Prime Minister’s appeal was part of a broader set of austerity measures he proposed amid the months-long Gulf crisis that shows no signs of easing, including cutting down on foreign travel and avoiding gold purchases.
The Prime Minister’s message was simple: cut unnecessary travel, conserve fuel and return to virtual meetings, as the Iran-US double blockade over the Strait of Hormuz — one of the world’s most critical energy chokepoints, especially for South Asia — continues.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal also comes at a time when several countries across the world are already shifting to work-from-home models or reduced work weeks, amid fears that US President Donald Trump may have thrown a spanner in the works of a potential peace deal between Iran and the US.
Just next door, India’s neighbour Pakistan has already announced a four-day work week for government offices. Going a step further, it has directed sectors across agriculture, industry and essential services to shift 50 per cent of their workforce to the work-from-home model.
With the Strait of Hormuz blockaded for 72 days and counting, most South Asian countries are beginning to feel the pinch. The Vietnam government has asked employers to enable work from home wherever possible to reduce fuel consumption.
Similar scenes are playing out across the region. In the sticky, humid climate of Thailand, the government has advised bureaucrats not to set air conditioners below 26 degrees Celsius, while also making work from home mandatory for some civil servants. Not far away, the Philippines is taking a similar route, making WFH compulsory for government employees and urging the private sector to adopt the same model.
India’s eastern neighbour Bangladesh is also racing against time to conserve every drop of oil by reducing work hours, suspending in-person classes and pushing for virtual classrooms.
Against this backdrop, India — heavily dependent on Gulf countries for oil and natural gas across sectors — heard Prime Minister Narendra Modi urge citizens to cut unnecessary travel and embrace remote work, as shipping traffic through the crucial energy chokepoint remains far below pre-conflict levels and the deadlock shows no signs of ending anytime soon.
Soon after Sunday’s announcement, support for the Prime Minister’s appeal poured in across X, with many users arguing that conserving fuel and reducing unnecessary travel were necessary steps as the Gulf crisis drags on with no clear resolution in sight.
Welcoming the move, the Forum For IT Employees urged employers to revive the work-from-home model, online meetings and video conferencing “to reduce fuel consumption and support the nation during the global energy crisis.”
“We request all IT companies to allow WFH wherever feasible. This will reduce traffic, save fuel, improve employee well-being and support the national interest,” the organisation wrote on X.
Amid the chatter around bringing back WFH, author Swapnil Kommawar said, “Many companies invested heavily in office spaces after Covid, so they prefer employees coming back.”
“If India needs to protect itself from wars, then these steps are necessary and any nationalist would agree,” one user wrote, while another asked, “Why waste public money on holding meetings?”
“PM Modi urged citizens to work from home. In the IT industry, it is very much possible and even more productive. What is stopping us from doing so?” one user tweeted, capturing a growing sentiment online that temporary lifestyle changes may be inevitable if the energy shock deepens further.
– Ends
Published By:
Sayan Ganguly
Published On:
May 11, 2026 14:37 IST
