Mumbai: As Prime Minister Narendra Modi called upon citizens to embrace austerity and voluntarily refrain from purchasing gold for at least a year, a nationwide furor erupted over India’s deep emotional, cultural and economic relationship with the precious, glittering yellow metal. The PM’s innocuous appeal for frugality quickly snowballed into a larger debate on the staggering quantity of gold lying idle in Indian households, estimated at over 35,000 tonnes. The PM’s rem