BackPetrol prices hit a record high of ₹84.20 a litre in NCR
The union government’s receipts from excise duty, the bulk of which comes from petrol, diesel and crude oil, has shown a sharp 40% year-on-year jump in the first seven months of this fiscal
PremiumNEW DELHI : Petrol prices in India on Thursday hit an all-time high, retailing at ₹84.20 a litre in the national capital. The retail price of petrol, which held steady for 29 days, was raised by 26 paise per litre on Wednesday and again by 23 paise a litre on Thursday.
The previous all-time high price of petrol was ₹84 a litre on 4 October 2018.
The price of diesel was also raised on Thursday by 26 paise to retail at ₹74.38 per litre in Delhi. It had touched an all-time high of ₹81.94 a litre on 30 July 2020. Central and state taxes and the commission of dealers are added to the refinery gate price of auto fuel to arrive at the retail price.
High fuel prices have added pressure on the government to cut taxes on fuel, amid reports that the Centre is exploring an excise duty cut. The final call will be taken by the finance ministry.
Mint earlier reported that the central government’s receipts from excise duty, the bulk of which comes from petrol, diesel, and crude oil, saw a sharp 40% year-on-year jump in the first seven months of this fiscal year.Its receipts from excise duty stood at ₹1.6 trillion in the April-October period, up from ₹1.14 trillion in the year ago, data from Controller General of Accounts showed.
In 2020-21, India, the third-largest oil importer globally, raised taxes on petrol and diesel by ₹13 and ₹16, respectively, in two tranches, through a special additional excise duty and the additional excise duty, collected as road and infrastructure cess.
Oil prices had fallen after the coronavirus outbreak because of a slump in global demand. However, since vaccination drives across the world fuelled sentiments, international crude oil prices have bounced back. At the time of writing this article, Brent was trading at $54.15 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate was trading at $50.63 a barrel. Every dollar per barrel rise in crude prices increases India’s oil import bill by ₹10,700 crore on an annualized basis. The cost of the Indian basket of crude, which comprises Oman, Dubai, and Brent crude, averaged $56.43 and $69.88 per barrel in FY18 and FY19, respectively.
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