CEO Explains How WFH Can Save 6,00,000 Litres Of Fuel In One City Amid Petrol, Diesel Price Hike

As India reels from a Rs 3-per-litre hike in petrol and diesel prices, a corporate executive has put out a calculation on social media showing that work-from-home, if adopted widely by the IT sector, could save 6,00,000 litres of petrol every single day — just in Hyderabad.

The post by Radha Krishna Kavuluru, who goes by @iamkrishradha on X, has drawn attention for the simplicity and scale of its arithmetic. As per his profile, Kavuluru is a Co-founder & CEO at Astro Voltaics. He also worked at Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). 

His starting point is a basic commute calculation. "In my previous organisation, I calculated, employees travel daily a distance of 15km to work. If an average bike (best case) is used, mileage is 45km. Which means 3 members consume 1 litre petrol, on one way travel," he wrote.

He then applied this to a specific office. "Microsoft Hyderabad is said to have over 12,000 employees. With the same numbers — although the average distance for Microsoft is well over 10km — to and from the office: 8,000 litres of petrol daily. By one office."

ALSO READ: Petrol, Diesel Price Hike Impact: Will Your Daily Budget Take A Hit? Here's What Could Get Costlier

Scale that to the entire IT workforce of Hyderabad and the number becomes striking. "Stats say Hyderabad employees around 9,00,000 people in the IT sector. Which is 6,00,000 litres of petrol. Every day. Saved with WFH. By one city," he wrote.

He then extended the calculation nationally. If the Indian IT sector is roughly ten times the size of Hyderabad's, that is 6 million litres of petrol every day — about 1 per cent of India's total daily petrol consumption of 581 million litres, all from one sector alone.

The annual impact, he argued, is even more significant. At an economic cost of roughly Rs 70 per litre, the fuel avoided through large-scale WFH adoption across Indian IT would amount to over Rs 15,000 crore per year.

ALSO READ: How To Check Petrol And Diesel Prices In Your City: Three Easy Ways

At current exchange rates, that translates to nearly 1.8 billion US dollars in reduced forex burden annually — from commuting reduction alone.

Kavuluru was careful to note that his estimate was conservative. Cars, traffic inefficiency, longer commutes, and induced congestion were all left out of the calculation.

"WFH is not just an HR policy anymore," he concluded. "At national scale, it becomes an energy, infrastructure and foreign reserve strategy."

Essential Business Intelligence, Continuous LIVE TV, Sharp Market Insights, Practical Personal Finance Advice and Latest Stories — On NDTV Profit.