Fuel Price Hike: After Temporary Pause, Prices In Delhi Rise Again - Check Latest Prices Here

Reserve Bank of India governor Shaktikanta Das also calls for reduced indirect taxes on petrol and diesel to control the fuel prices at a reasonable level

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After a temporary halt, fuel prices in the national capital once again hit a record high on Tuesday after petrol and diesel prices were hiked by 25 paise and 35 paise, respectively. The hike in fuel prices further pushed the retail rates, which vary between states due to local sales tax or VAT, freight charges.

What are the current prices?

The hike took the petrol price in Delhi to Rs 90.93 per litre while Diesel prices touched Rs 81.32 a litre, as per the data by Indian Oil Corporation. The rates in the national capital remained stable on Monday, with petrol at Rs 90.58 per litre and diesel at Rs 80.97. The petrol prices in Kolkata stands at Rs 91.12, Chennai (Rs 92.90), Bengaluru (Rs 93.98), Bhubaneshwar (Rs 92), Hyderabad (Rs 94.54), Jaipur (Rs 97.34), Patna (Rs 93.56) and Thiruvananthapuram (Rs 92.81).

 The prices in the financial capital Mumbai, stands at Rs 97.34 for petrol while Rs 88.44 for diesel.

What is the reason behind the price hike?

The prices are are soaring as a result of stabilising crude prices apart from the central and state taxes levied on them took the prices higher. The government increased the taxes to mop up the revenue losses in wake of the pandemic. Despite, crude oil prices crashing in 2020 and reaching record low, higher taxes led to hike in fuel prices in the country. If you go through the price break-up in Delhi, 60 per cent the charges paid at the gas station is towards excise duty and value-added tax whereas the remaining 40 per cent cost is crude oil price. With oil on the boil in global markets and both crude and product prices seeing a big spike, Saudi Arabia unilateral production cuts may also be withdrawn post March putting downward pressure on oil prices.

Meanwhile, Reserve Bank of India governor Shaktikanta Das has asked for reduced indirect taxes on petrol and diesel to control the fuel prices at a reasonable level.

"CPI inflation excluding food and fuel remained elevated at 5.5 per cent in December, due to inflationary impact of rising crude oil prices and high indirect tax rates on petrol and diesel, and pick-up in inflation of key goods and services, particularly in transport and health categories," Das said, according to the minutes of the monetary policy meeting released by the central bank.

"Proactive supply-side measures, particularly in enabling a calibrated unwinding of high indirect taxes on petrol and diesel – in a co-ordinated manner by centre and states – are critical to contain a further build-up of cost-pressures in the economy," the governor added.