India bans first-class air travel for officials

The Indian government has banned first class air travel for bureaucrats, meetings in five-star hotels and purchases of cars in a series of tough austerity measures.

The moves are aimed at achieving a fiscal deficit target of 4.1% of the gross domestic product for this year. India's economy has slowed in recent years, growing by 4.7% in 2013-14. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP swept to power in the recent election on the promise of reviving the economy. The previous Congress-led government had initiated similar measures in 2012 and 2013 to trim the deficit.

The latest austerity measures “are intended at promoting fiscal discipline, without restricting the operational efficiency of the government,” a finance ministry statement said. “In the context of the current fiscal situation, there is a need to continue to rationalise expenditure and optimise available resources,” it said.

New jobs have been frozen and purchases of cars have been mostly banned, reports said.

- BBC