In a statement issued in Mumbai, Athawale, a Bharatiya Janata Party ally and the Union Minister of State for Social Justice, said that he understands people are getting affected by the rising fuel prices.
If popular is white and populism black, then Mamata Banerjee is a curious shade of grey that may be hard to spot in the colour charts.
A hike in the prices of petrol and diesel is unlikely before June 15 as the Congress-led government does not want a showdown with its allies in the first session of Parliament beginning June 2.
Financial services majors Citi and HSBC said the long awaited government decision to hike fuel prices is a positive step, although it will fan the already high inflation and may not prevent fiscal slippage.
Petrol and diesel prices will go by Rs 2.50 and Rs 2 per litre respectively.
Gandhi said the one paisa cut in petrol rates was not a "suitable response" to the fuel challenge he threw to the prime minister a few days ago.
You see the Thar is not just a Car.... It is The Thar.
The WPI inflation currently is ruling around 8.6 per cent. He said the duties like 5 per cent import duty on crude oil was abolished when international crude price touched a record high of $147 a barrel.
The issue of price rise is a worry for every government -- it is a political volcano. But the United Progressive Alliance on Friday steeply hiked the fuel price. Will people react? Or do they remain silent and suffer? Abhishek Mande talks to experts to 'read' the pulse.
Petrol price cut by Rs 1.46, diesel by Rs 1.53 per litre
The government will look into the issue of revising the petrol and diesel prices in view of the steep increase in international crude oil prices, the new Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Mani Shankar Aiyar said on Monday.
Hours after the United Progressive Alliance government increased petrol and diesel prices today, the Left parties announced nationwide demonstrations against the hike, which are likely to be held on June 28.
With Indian Oil, Hindustan Petroleum and Bharat Petroleum projected to lose Rs 200,000 crore (Rs 2,000 billion) in revenues on sale of petrol, diesel, domestic LPG and kerosene below import cost, industry sources said a hike in the range of Rs 2 to 5 per litre appears on the cards.
Oil firms were supposed to break-even on sale of petrol, diesel, LPG and kerosene if the price of the basket of crude India buys were to come down to $67 per barrel. However, with 20 per cent depreciation in value of rupee against the dollar, the break-even point is now at $61 a barrel.
Petroleum Minister Ram Naik on Wednesday hoped the high international crude oil prices will ease as soon as the winter season demand for oil in western countries is over.
The government is considering a 3-rupee to 5-rupee hike in the price of diesel, which accounts for more than 40 percent of fuel use, government officials said last week, as the country looks to cut import costs by nearly $20 billion to trim a record current account deficit.
Diesel, which is sold at Rs 53.67 a litre in Delhi, will cost Rs 53.77 after the hike in commission.
Empowered group of ministers on fuel pricing was likely to meet soon.
These refineries, commissioned mostly in the 1950s and 1960s during India's early industrialisation push, are inefficient and costly to maintain compared to their modern counterparts on the coast mainly operated by private companies.
Petrol and diesel prices on Monday were hiked for the seventh day in a row as a rally in international oil prices took retail rates in India to new highs. Petrol price was increased by 26 paise per litre and diesel by 29 paise, according to a price notification of state-owned fuel retailers. This pushed retail rates, which differ from state to state depending on the incidence of local sales tax or VAT and freight charges, to their highest level. The hike took petrol price in Delhi to a record Rs 88.99 per litre and to a highest-ever rate of Rs 95.46 a litre in Mumbai.
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.
Petroleum Minister Ram Naik on Monday said the hike in petrol and diesel prices was "justified" given the hardening of global crude prices.
The government on Tuesday ruled out any immediate cut in petrol and diesel prices in line with fall in global oil prices, but said a reduction may be considered once crude prices fall below $50 a barrel.
Oil firms' borrowings could fall by up to Rs 15,000 cr, govt's subsidy bill by 12% .
Concerned over surging prices, Finance Minister P Chidambaram said on Friday the government will not hesitate to take more fiscal and monetary measures to contain inflation.
Tata Motors is looking to consolidate its position in the SUV segment as it marks its entry into the highly competitive mid-size space which is currently dominated by South Korean and Japanese carmakers. The Mumbai-based auto major on Monday launched midsize SUV coupe Curvv with petrol and diesel powertrains with a price starting at Rs 9.99 lakh. The company has already unveiled the electric version of the model in August.
Petrol and diesel will cost Rs 2 a litre less from Wednesday after the first excise duty cut by the Modi government comes into effect.
Petrol and diesel prices on Tuesday were hiked for the sixth time this month, propelling prices to cross the Rs 100-a-litre-mark in places from Nanded in Maharashtra to Rewa in Madhya Pradesh to Jaisalmer in Rajasthan. Petrol price was hiked by 27 paise a litre and diesel by 30 paise per litre, according to a price notification by state-owned fuel retailers. The increase took petrol and diesel prices to their highest-ever level across the country. In Delhi, petrol now comes for Rs 91.80 per litre and diesel is priced at Rs 82.36.
He did not announce any rollback on diesel price hike.
The ministry is preparing a draft note for consideration of the CCPA on pricing of diesel, kerosene and LPG, official sources said.
Much before the honeymoon ended with the public, the Manmohan Singh government delivered a shock in the form of the fuel price hike -- an act of confident UPA -- to compensate the losses of 2010 Union budget.
Retail inflation declined to 6.83 per cent in August after touching a 15-month high of 7.44 per cent in July, mainly due to softening prices of vegetables, but still remains above the Reserve Bank's comfort zone. The overall inflation in the food basket stood at 9.94 per cent in August as against 11.51 per cent in July, according to data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) on Tuesday. Retail inflation based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was at 7 per cent in August 2022.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh ruled out any rollback in hike in petrol and diesel prices, saying the economy has the capacity to absorb the increase without triggering an inflationary spiral. Singh also made it clear that following populist fiscal policies for long harmed the economy, two days after key United Pogressive Alliance allies Trinamool Congress and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam made a strong pitch for the rollback.
Petrol and diesel prices on Tuesday touched fresh highs as rupee dipped to a record low of 71.54 against US dollar, making imports costlier
Essar Oil has decided to cut petrol and diesel prices in the range 50 paise to Rs 2.50 per litre effective from July 16.
On June 2, petrol was brought down by Rs 2.02 to Rs 71.16 a litre in the capital.
As other members of the government have pointed out -- Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh and Chief Economic Advisor Kaushik Basu among them -- India cannot afford to delay increasing prices, given the ballooning subsidy bill.
The government will review petrol and diesel prices on January 31 and a reduction is likely if international crude prices fall further.
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