Petrol price exceeds ₹120 in MP’s border district; diesel nears ₹110

Hike in petrol and diesel prices have been exacerbated in the border districts of Madhya Pradesh due to transportation cost and cheaper rates in neighbouring states. In the Anuppur district of the state, petrol prices crossed ₹120 per litre, while diesel prices hovered around ₹110 per litre on Wednesday. Similarly the cost of petrol in Balaghat, which falls on the state's border with Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra, reached ₹119.23 per litre today.

Petrol pump owners in the region said that the fuel business in border districts of Madhya Pradesh is severely hit, as most vehicles prefer to refuel in Maharashtra or Chhattisgarh, where petrol and diesel are cheaper.

Abhishek Jaiswal, a petrol pump owner in Bijuri town of Anuppur district, told news agency PTI that the price of petrol has gone up to ₹120.4 per litre after an increase of 36 paise on Tuesday. The cost of diesel reached ₹109.17 per litre, following an increase of 37 paise, he added.

Petroleum is brought to Anuppur from Jabalpur oil depot, about 250 km from the district headquarter. This makes the fuel costlier in the district than in other parts of the state due to higher transportation cost, Jaiswal stated.

The price of petrol and diesel in Balaghat reached ₹119.23 and ₹108.20 per litre respectively, after an increase of 37 paise, Ravi Vaidya, the owner of a petrol pump on Lalburra road in Balaghat, told PTI.

Meanwhile, the price of petrol in Bhopal touched ₹116.62, after a hike of 36 paise, while diesel is being sold at ₹106.01 per litre following a rise of 37 paise on Tuesday, a petrol pump owner said.