INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Government had raised excise duty nine times between November 2014 and January 2016
Petrol prices and diesel prices reached unprecedented levels as petrol prices almost hit Rs 85 in
Mumbai and Rs 80 in Chennai on Wednesday
While there are calls for the reduction in excise duty so as to slash the petrol prices and diesel prices, the union law minister Ravi
Shankar Prasad says that the government is looking forward to a long-term solution of the highly capricious situation instead of looking for
"The government is keen that instead of having an ad hoc measure it may be desirable to have a long-term view which addresses not only the
volatility but also takes care of the unnecessary ambiguity arising out of frequent ups and downs," said Ravi Shankar Prasad, union law
minister said.At the same time, the opposition has cornered the government on the rising fuel prices
Former Union finance minister P Chidambaram saysthat there is a scope of price reduction of Rs 25.: Petrol Price Crosses Rs
85 In Mumbai; Diesel At New Highs"Bonanza to central government is Rs 25 on every litre of petrol
This money rightfully belongs to the average consumer
Central government saves Rs 15 on every litre of petrol due to fall in crude oil prices
It also puts additional tax of Rs 10 on every litre of petrol," Chidambaram added.The rising petrol prices and diesel prices are attributed
to the spike of Brent crude prices in the global markets, while the rupee's continuous fall against the US dollar is making the fuel even
more expensive in the domestic market
It is worth mentioning here that India imports nearly 80 per cent of its fuel consumption from abroad
had raised excise duty nine times between November 2014 and January 2016 to shore up finances as global oil prices fell, but then cut the
19.48 a litre of excise duty on petrol and Rs 15.33 per litre on diesel.State sales tax or VAT varies from state to state
Unlike excise duty, VAT is ad valorem and results in higher revenues for the state when rates move up.In Delhi, VAT on petrol was Rs 15.84 a
litre, and Rs 9.68 on diesel in April
Today it is Rs 16.34 on petrol and Rs 10.02 a litre on diesel
Currently, petrol and diesel prices are revised on a daily basis, a practice adopted by oil marketing companies in June 2017
The prices are implemented at fuel cities at 6 am.
