New Delhi: Excise duty on petrol and diesel, on Saturday (May 21) was reduced by the Centre by Rs 8 per litre and Rs 6 per litre respectively. The surprise move was aimed to lessen people’s woes regarding high fuel prices and will cost the Centre around Rs 1 lakh crore revenue per year. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman made the announcement on Twitter along with other statements on curbing inflation and provision of cylinders under the Ujjwala scheme.
Which states have reduced VAT on petrol and diesel?
Soon after her announcement on fuel prices, other states including Rajasthan and Kerala slashed Value-added Tax (VAT) on petrol and diesel. Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot announced a Rs 2.48 per litre reduction in VAT on petrol and Rs 1.16 per litre reduction in VAT on diesel.
On Twitter, he wrote, “Due to the reduction in the prices of petrol and diesel by the central government, the state government will reduce VAT by Rs 2.48 per litre on petrol and Rs 1.16 per litre on diesel. With this, petrol will be cheaper by Rs 10.48 and diesel by Rs 7.16 per liter in the state.”
केन्द्र सरकार द्वारा पेट्रोल-डीजल की कीमतों में की गई एक्साइज कटौती से राज्य सरकार का पेट्रोल पर 2.48 रुपये प्रति लीटर एवं डीजल पर 1.16 रुपये प्रति लीटर वैट भी कम होगा। इससे प्रदेश में पेट्रोल 10.48 रुपये एवं डीजल 7.16 रुपये प्रति लीटर सस्ता होगा।
— Ashok Gehlot (@ashokgehlot51) May 21, 2022
The Kerala government also announced a slash in tax on fuel prices – Rs 2.41 for petrol and Rs 1.36 for diesel.
Goa CM welcomed the decision of the Central government to lower the prices of petrol and diesel in order to give relief to common citizens reeling under record inflation.
What are the current petrol and diesel prices?
Petrol prices in major cities (22nd May)
Ahmedabad ₹ 105.06
Bangalore ₹ 111.07
Bhopal ₹ 118.12
Chandigarh ₹ 104.73
Chennai ₹ 110.83
Ghaziabad ₹ 105.23
Gurgaon ₹ 105.84
Hyderabad ₹ 119.47
Kolkata ₹ 115.1
Mumbai ₹ 120.5
Mysore ₹ 110.59
New Delhi ₹ 105.45
Noida ₹ 105.45
Pune ₹ 119.95
Trivandrum ₹ 107.44
Jaipur ₹108.48
(Source: Goodtreturns)
Diesel prices in major cities (22nd May)
New Delhi ₹ 96.67
Kolkata ₹ 92.76
Mumbai ₹ 97.28
Chennai ₹ 94.24
Gurgaon ₹ 90.05
Noida ₹ 90.14 ₹
Bangalore ₹ 87.89
Chandigarh ₹ 84.26
Hyderabad ₹ 97.82
Jaipur ₹ 93.72
Lucknow ₹ 89.76
Trivandrum ₹ 96.26
(Source: Goodreturns)
Centre’s decision to reduce excise duty on fuel
On Saturday (May 21, 2022), FM Nirmala Sitharaman reduced the central excise duty on petrol and diesel by Rs 8 per litre and Rs 6 per litre, respectively. After crude oil prices surged in the aftermath of the Ukraine crisis, petrol and diesel prices in several regions of the country have surpassed Rs 100 per litre.
7/12 We are reducing the Central excise duty on Petrol by ₹ 8 per litre and on Diesel by ₹ 6 per litre.
This will reduce the price of petrol by ₹ 9.5 per litre and of Diesel by ₹ 7 per litre.It will have revenue implication of around ₹ 1 lakh crore/year for the government.
— Nirmala Sitharaman (@nsitharaman) May 21, 2022
8/12
I wish to exhort all state governments, especially the states where reduction wasn’t done during the last round (November 2021), to also implement a similar cut and give relief to the common man.— Nirmala Sitharaman (@nsitharaman) May 21, 2022
According to the minister, the measure will lower the price of fuel by Rs 9.5 per litre and diesel by Rs 7. She urged governments who did not reduce fuel prices in November to do so now.
“The globe is going through a terrible period right now. Even as the world recovers from the Covid-19 outbreak, the Ukraine crisis has caused supply chain disruptions and shortages of a variety of items. In many countries, this has resulted in inflation and economic suffering”, Sitharaman stated on Twitter.
(With agency inputs)
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