New Delhi: Relax, fuel prices are not going up anytime soon. The government has put off a decision on raising fuel prices until the completion of elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh in spite of the skyrocketing crude prices in the international market.
The thinking in the government is that no hard decision should be taken in view of the polls in the two states, highly-placed sources said. The Union Cabinet will now consider the matter only after the elections are over.
Petroleum Minister Murli Deora had met Finance Minister P Chidambaram last week to discuss measures to cope with the record international crude oil prices that are racing towards the $100 a barrel mark. Deora was also supposed to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to discuss the issue.
The Petroleum Ministry has been pressing for an excise duty cut of Rs 2 per litre on petrol and Re 1 a litre on diesel to offset the rise in revenue loss on sale of petrol, diesel, domestic LPG and kerosene.
The revenue loss has increased to Rs 61,840 crore now from Rs 54,935 crore projected last month when the government had decided to compensate 42.7 per cent of the loss on fuel sale through issue of oil bonds.
Besides giving oil bonds worth Rs 23,457.24 crore, 35 per cent or Rs 19,227.25 crore of the total under-realisation in revenue was to be borne by ONGC, GAIL and OIL. The remaining under-recovery was to be borne by IOC, BPCL and HPCL.
Fuel retailers Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum are currently losing over Rs 240 crore per day on sale of petrol, diesel, domestic LPG and PDS kerosene.
Oil Ministry has argued that increased realisation from customs duty on crude oil because of higher value of imported goods, can be used to reduce excise duty on petrol and diesel.
(With PTI inputs)
Comments
0 comment