India has emerged as the world's biggest cylinder-based liquefied petroleum gas user with the customer base crossing 7 crore (70 million mark), Petroleum Minister Ram Naik said.
Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council Chairman C Rangarajan on Thursday pitched for a "substantial" increase in prices of diesel and cooking gas, saying failure to take strong steps would derail the fiscal consolidation process.
In Haridwar, where he performed 'Ganga Aarti' at the famous Har Ki Pauri Ghat, Gandhi said, "We will give you a chief minister who comes to you, listens to your problems and runs the government accordingly."
The new system will entail a periodic revision in the price of subsidised LPG cylinders so that the subsidy remains fixed.
'So you have welfare programmes, you reach out to the poor, you cut out the middlemen, you cut out the leakages and you try to raise the standard of living.'
Petrol price on Friday crossed the Rs 100- per-litre mark in Chennai as well as in some places in Punjab and Kerala after fuel prices were hiked yet again. Petrol is priced at over Rs 99 a litre in Delhi and Kolkata -- the only metro cities which haven't seen the Rs 100 mark yet. Petrol price was hiked by 35 paise per litre on Friday but there was no change in diesel rates, according to a price notification of state-owned fuel retailers.
Now, the Rs 1,200 crore induction cooker industry has got a much needed boost to go for an all out marketing battle against the gas stove segment pegged at Rs 1,300 crore.
Housing sales mostly declined during the first and the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic but prices did not fall in most of the cities but rather increased in some cities, according to the Economic Survey 2021-22. The pre-Budget document also highlighted that the housing demand recovered after both the waves on the back of pent up demand, low interest rates on home loans and reduction in stamp duty by some states. The survey has analysed the National Housing Bank's data on change in housing transactions in Q1FY21 (first COVID-19 wave) and Q1FY22 (second COVID-19 wave) over the pre-pandemic levels of Q1FY20. It also looked into change in housing prices index during this period.
Gas cylinders are at the centre of a controversy in India.
During this period, all government and private offices, shopping complexes, malls, bars, sports complexes, pubs and beauty parlours will remain closed.
Fifty-six months on, the government's record in implementing these schemes and projects has been mixed, report Arup Roychoudhury and Indivjal Dhasmana.
The party released its manifesto -- Samajwadi Vachan Patra -- for the coming assembly elections, shortly after the BJP released its own.
The Congress took out marches and observed bandh at several places on Saturday to protest against rising fuel prices.
But demand has shown signs of pick up in the last 10 days of April after the government allowed resumption of economic activity beyond the urban municipal limit.
The price of petrol breached a three-year high on Monday at Rs 74.50 a litre, while the price of diesel was at its highest at Rs 65.75 a litre
Negotiators from nearly 200 countries have accepted a new climate agreement after the COP26 summit in Glasgow concluded its extra time plenary on Saturday with a deal, which recognises India's intervention for the world to 'phase down' rather than "phase out" fossil fuels.
The Congress had on Friday extended support to the countrywide 'chakka jam' called by the farmer unions, saying party workers will stand shoulder to shoulder with farmers in their protest.
US private equity firm I Squared Capital is dropping out of the race to buy India's second-largest state oil firm, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) owing to a complex deal structure and lack of financial backers for the transaction, sources said. I Squared Capital through its Indian arm, Think Gas was among the three suitors that had evinced interest in buying the government's near 53 per cent shareholding in BPCL. "The company has made a decision not to participate in the financial bidding," a source with direct knowledge of the development said.
The government has sought to increase crude oil inflow from Saudi Arabia by five million tonnes from 27.33 million tonnes, as supplies from Iran is set to decline following US sanctions.
Modi said there was a time when families would celebrate getting gas connections as if they have got home a Mercedes.
National oil companies are staring at inventory losses as they have to bring down refinery throughputs because of the plunging demand for fuels following the nationwide lockdown to contain the deadly coronavirus infection. India is the world's third-largest energy consumer but the lockdown has shut businesses, suspended flights, stopped trains and brought almost the entire vehicular movement to a halt, impacting fuel demand.
The kerosene subsidy is expected to decline by 40 per cent from Rs 7,595 crore in 2016-17 to Rs 4,500 crore this financial year.
From road transport to health insurance, tax rules have changed from October 1.
'We will do whatever is necessary when the day and moment arrives.' 'As a party which has ruled Maharashtra for most of its existence, we also have our base and turf to protect.'
While the Union Cabinet had in November last year approved the sale of the government's entire 52.98 per cent stake in BPCL, offers seeking expression of interest (EoI), or bids showing interest in buying its stake, were invited only on March 7. The EoI submission deadline was May 2, but on March 31 it was extended up to June 13. On Wednesday, the government said this deadline is further being extended up to July 31.
The government is keen to close the sale before March 31, 2021, to help meet a record Rs 2.1 lakh crore target which Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has set from divestment proceeds in the Budget for 2020-21.
LPG alone will save us Rs 8,000 cr a year: M Veerappa Moily.
Empowered group of ministers on fuel pricing was likely to meet soon.
The government has nipped Oil and Natural Gas Corp's exclusive plans to extract liquid petroleum gas and C2/C3 from liquefied natural gas by also allowing gas utility GAIL India to do the same from the common LNG being imported by Petronet.
Petrol and diesel prices were hiked by 60 paisa per litre on Monday, for the second day in a row, as State-owned oil firms reverted to daily price revisions after an 83-day hiatus. Petrol price in Delhi was hiked to Rs 72.46 per litre from Rs 71.86 on Sunday, while diesel rates were increased to Rs 70.59 a litre from Rs 69.99, according to a price notification of state oil marketing companies.
While eight children were taken out safely by people working in nearby fields, four, including a girl three-year-old girl, were charred to death, they added. Punjab CM Amarinder Singh ordered a magisterial enquiry into the incident.
The government has partially deregulated diesel price allowing a hike of 40-50 paise a litre per month for retail customers and nearly Rs 11 for bulk consumers, a step that is feared will have a cascading effect on inflation.
The government on Friday said it will not increase prices of domestic cooking gas (LPG) and kerosene despite the Budget cutting to half the subsidy on the two mass consumed cooking fuels from April 1.
National Thermal Power Corporation has rejected bids of British oil and gas major BG Group and public sector oil companies' consortium Petronet LNG Ltd for supply of 3 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas.
'Economic issues do not matter during elections; it is the emotional connect that helps swing votes.'
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