The government is preparing a national hydrogen road map and will launch a national mission on bio-diesel next month as part of efforts to encourage use of alternate fuels, the Lok Sabha was informed on Tuesday.
Petrol price will be cheaper by 49 paise/litre and diesel by Rs 1.21.
Finance ministry officials said the issue had been raised several times before, but this time it was serious in the wake of huge differential between the two fuel options.
A top oil ministry official said it will be "suicidal" to even think of raising prices of diesel, LPG or kerosene just before Parliament is to meet.
Petrol price may be reduced by about Re 1 per litre while diesel price may be hiked by 40-50 paisa a litre from March 15/16.
Although diesel vehicles currently account for 30 per cent of the 1.2 million sold in India, the share is expected to climb to 45 per cent of the projected 2 million market by 2010.
'Those who feared that I would have run one hell of a campaign targeting the most powerful people in India snatched away my democratic right from me.' 'I will expose these democracy-killers.'
The retail selling price of petrol at Delhi would come down by Rs 1.82 a litre.
"Beat with a one-litre diesel engine will also be coming in June this year," General Motors India Vice-President P Balendran said after unveiling the LPG variant of the compact car here.
The government has cut windfall gains tax on domestically-produced crude oil to nil while continuing the rate at zero on the export of diesel and ATF. The government has slashed the special additional excise duty (SAED) on crude oil produced by companies such as Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) to nil from Rs 4,100 per tonne with effect from Tuesday, an official order dated May 15 said. This is the second time that the levy, which was introduced in July last year in the form of a cess to tax supernormal gains of oil producers and fuel exporters, has been cut to nil for domestically-produced oil.
The Vin Diesel film had the best collections amongst all the movies in the running across the country.
Plans to increase price progressively.
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.
Petroleum Minister Murli Deora on Saturday said the government is considering to prices of petroleum products in the next few days.
The surge in diesel vehicle demand has prompted the companies to explore options such as developing new engines as well as buying these from other companies.
The Delhi government on Monday started a process of deregistering 15-year-old diesel vehicles in the city and also imposed a ban on use of fire crackers except for religious functions, following directions from Lt Governor Najeeb Jung to bring down air pollution.
The price reduction will be effective midnight tonight, announced Indian Oil Corp
Government may impose a 25 per cent cess on big diesel cars and charge bulk users other than railways and state transport corporations Rs 22 a litre more for diesel as part of a dual fuel pricing policy.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who released BJP's manifesto for the legislative assembly polls, said a committee would be constituted on UCC.
With the rupee continuing to remain weak against the US dollar, losses on diesel have climbed to Rs 9.45 per litre, upsetting the government's subsidy maths.
The government on Tuesday ruled out any further increase in diesel and cooking fuel prices even though the current retail rates are lower than their cost of production.
"We had announced last year that the decision would be taken at an appropriate time to deregulate diesel, the government hasn't changed their decision... We have to see how the inflationary pressures go and take a decision," Revenue Secretary Sunil Mitra told reporters on the sidelines of an Assocham function.
Diesel sales in the country zoomed by 15 per cent in the first fortnight of April 2004, triggered off largely by the ensuing Lok Sabha elections.
The increases, which follow similar hikes in mid-November, seek to take advantage of a slump in world oil prices to shore up government revenues without stoking inflation.
