Rebuffing petroleum ministry, Siddaramaiah launches Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana-like scheme months before state polls
The sale is key to meeting the government's disinvestment target of Rs 2.1 trillion in the financial year 2020-21. So far, the disinvestment exercise has fetched the government Rs 34,845 crore during the current financial year.
Iran has sought a 20 per cent increase in price for the additional 2.5 million tonnes per annum of liquefied natural gas that India wants to buy, over and above the five million tonnes contracted earlier this week.
The retail selling price of petrol at Delhi would come down by Rs 1.82 a litre.
The government appointed panel will look at the difficulties consumers faced in receiving the subsidy after buying gas cylinders at market rates.
The demand for black oils and specialty products like fuel oil, bitumen, petcoke and sulphur has also shown marked improvement, facilitating increase of refineries throughput.
The government does not seem inclined, at least in the petroleum sector, to effect sudden and steep upward price revisions to tame its huge subsidy burden and rein in fiscal deficit.
'You just make the bureaucracy honest and make them function with integrity.' 'Everything will be taken care of after that.' 'But this Mission Karmayogi does not even mention these two words -- honesty and integrity.'
The Bharatiya Janata Party lined up several promises, including a legislation to protect traditions of the Ayyappa temple at Sabarimala and a law against "love jihad", while assuring employment for at least one person from each family and free laptops to high school students, in its manifesto for the assembly polls unveiled in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday.
The blaze erupted around 7 am in the gas processing plant of the ONGC located in Uran area of neighbouring Navi Mumbai, an official said.
India's fuel demand in May slumped to its lowest in nine months as restrictions to curb the second wave of COVID infections stalled mobility and muted economic activity. Fuel demand fell 1.5 per cent to 15.1 million tonnes despite the low base of May 2020 and was down 11.3 per cent when compared to the previous month, according to data from the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) of the oil ministry. India was under one of the world's strictest lockdowns in May last year, which brought all mobility and economic activity to a grinding halt.
Government-controlled oil-marketing companies (OMCs) have held back petrol and diesel price revisions for a week and are expected to continue doing so, ostensibly owing to political reasons. It appears that the Centre has informally conveyed to the three major OMCs to not revise fuel prices for the time being, two people in the government said. This informal directive follows the talks between the Centre and states on cutting taxes and bringing the auto fuels under the good service tax regime not fetching the desired results, so far.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for 'spreading lies and canards' against the Trinamool Congress government, and said voters, this time, would witness 'Didi versus BJP' fight in all 294 constituencies of the poll-bound state.
Privatisation-bound Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) may sell a part of its stake in Petronet LNG and Indraprastha Gas (IGL) to shed its promoter status to obviate the need for its new owner to make open offers for the two gas companies, sources said. BPCL holds 12.5 per cent of shareholding in India's largest liquefied natural gas importer, Petronet, and a 22.5 per cent stake in city gas retailer, IGL. It is a promoter of both the listed companies and holds board positions. As per the legal position evaluated by Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) - the department running the process for sale of government's entire 52.98 per cent stake in BPCL - the acquirer of BPCL will have to make an open offer to the minority shareholders of Petronet and IGL for acquisition of 26 per cent shares, three sources with knowledge of the matter said.
The Indian government has lifted the ban on setting up of petrol pumps and cooking gas agencies by allowing state-run oil firms to appoint dealers on their own.
Sitharaman said the government also proposes Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana to address critical infrastructure gap in fisheries sector.
Petrol prices on Thursday crossed Rs 73 a litre mark, the highest level since the BJP government came to power in 2014, while diesel touched a record high of Rs 64.11 a litre.
Weeks after confusion over three Mauritius-based funds whipsawing shares of Adani group firms, billionaire Gautam Adani on Monday said that "twisted narrative" seems to imply that companies have regulatory powers over their shareholders and can compel disclosures. Shares of port-to-energy group nosedived last month after reports that accounts of three of the six Mauritius-based funds that have invested most of their money in Adani group firms had been frozen by the national share depository. The three funds owned about $6 billion of shares across the conglomerate.
Sale of diesel, the most consumed fuel in the country, fell 12 per cent, while petrol sales fell 7.4 per cent year-on-year to 2.38 million tonnes although it rose 5.3 per cent from 2.26 million tonnes in July as commuters preferred driving to using public transportation.
A day after the Patna high court slammed the Bihar government for its poor handling of the second wave of the pandemic and sought to know whether it was enforcing lockdown or not, the administration on Tuesday announced imposition of lockdown from May 5 to May 15.
NDA's energy plan powered UP win, but it's not a winner yet. Centre has claimed to have saved money by targeted coverage but critics say the system is not yet foolproof.
Petrol price can go down to Rs 75 a litre across the country if brought under the ambit of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), but there is a lack of political will, which is keeping Indian oil product prices at one of the highest in the world, economists at SBI said on Thursday.
From online frauds to LPG cylinder accidents, manufacturers and service providers give a host of covers.
The demand, which had fallen by as much as 70 per cent, has since recovered after lockdown restrictions were eased beginning early May.
Reforms process has definitely degenerated into a newer form of LPG -- Loot, Plunder and Goonda-raj.
Cheque payments will be safer; the limit for contactless card transactions hiked.
The outcome in UP is far more significant than in the other states going to the polls next year. An unlikely setback in UP can cramp the Modi government, virtually making it a lame-duck two years ahead of the 2024 parliamentary poll, observes Virendra Kapoor.
Three oil PSUs have moved the Supreme Court seeking modification of its earlier order that Aadhaar card is not mandatory and no person should suffer for want of it in getting benefits of government schemes.
Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar on Thursday denied having presented to the Cabinet a proposal for raising LPG and kerosene prices.
The additional delivery charge for 'urgent' supply of LPG cylinder is nothing but a fraudulent exercise. It is just another backdoor price hike, former Petroleum Minister Ram Naik said.
Rediff.com takes a look at the progress of schemes initiated by the government.
Indian Oil Corp, the nation's largest fuel retailer, positioned adequate stocks of all petroleum products -- petrol, diesel, kerosene and LPG in the state.
The government is selling its entire 100 per cent stake in Air India but wants effective control to stay with Indian nationals.
The Cabinet has approved a framework of understanding on cooperation in hydrocarbons with Bangladesh recently.
Estimated to cost $44 billion, the project was expected to be commissioned by 2025.
The PM said that a lie is being spread that this govt had brought the law to snatch people's rights. He dared rivals to find anything discriminatory in his work.
State fuel retailers IOC, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum sell diesel, domestic LPG and kerosene at government dictated rates which are lower than cost of production.
This is the first time that petrol sales in the world's third-largest oil importer have risen since the March 25 nationwide lockdown crippled economic activity and sent demand plummeting.
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