Petrol, diesel prices hit record high after yet another hike

Prices of petrol and diesel have now touched record high in the national capital after yet another hike on Friday. Price of a litre of petrol in Delhi will now cost ₹85.45 while diesel will cost ₹75.63 per litre.

Oil marketing companies raised the fuel prices by 25 paise. The recent hike has spiralled the price of petrol in Mumbai and Indore beyond ₹92 per litre.In fact, the price of petrol in Sriganganagar, Rajasthan is now just ₹2.50 away from hitting ₹100 per litre mark.

Earlier this week, petrol price breached the ₹85 a litre mark in the national capital on Tuesday, and diesel neared record high after rates were raised for the second consecutive day.

State-owned fuel retailers -- Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) -- had on January 6 resumed daily price revision after nearly a month-long hiatus.

According to reports, the hike in prices is mainly due to a higher share of excise duty. The government is reportedly in talks to cut excise duty and the ministry of petroleum and natural gas has already suggested the same to the finance ministry.

When fuel prices had last touched record high on October 4, 2018, the government had cut excise duty on petrol and diesel by ₹1.50 per litre in a bid to ease inflationary pressure and boost consumer confidence. Alongside, state-owned fuel retailers cut prices by another Re 1 a litre, which they recouped later.

This time, there are no indications of a duty cut so far.

Petrol and diesel prices are revised on a daily basis in line with benchmark international price and foreign exchange rates. They vary from state to state depending on the incidence of local taxes.