March 23 (Citizen.lk News) - The Office of the Commissioner General of Essential Services has issued guidelines to ensure the economical use of fuel reserves and the uninterrupted maintenance of essential services, in light of the prevailing wartime situation in the Middle East. The circular was released yesterday (23) to all Ministry Secretaries, Provincial Chief Secretaries, District Secretaries, and Heads of Statutory Bodies.
The directive emphasizes that potential disruptions in fuel imports may occur in the future, and calls on all public and private sector institutions to implement measures to conserve existing fuel reserves. Key instructions include:
Officials are urged to use public transport or carpooling instead of private vehicles whenever possible.
Daily transport plans should be prepared to minimize the number of vehicles used for field duties, under the supervision of a designated staff officer
Physical meetings and discussions should be limited, with digital platforms such as Zoom, Google Meet, MS Teams, or WhatsApp used instead.
Exchanges of documents and information should primarily be conducted via E-mail or WhatsApp, minimizing physical transport of documents.
Fuel must be prioritized for health, security, and other essential services, while additional fuel reserves are to be maintained with proper reporting.
The circular notes that there are around 92,000 vehicles in the public sector. Saving just one liter of fuel per vehicle per day could result in a daily saving of 92,000 liters, translating to approximately 9.2 million liters per month and 110 million liters annually. Institutions are required to raise awareness and implement programs at the organizational level to achieve these savings.
The Commissioner General of Essential Services stressed that these guidelines must be implemented immediately to safeguard essential services and optimize fuel use during potential supply disruptions.
