News Analysis India

Tag: Fuel Prices in India

  • Centre’s faulty polices leading to price hike, hitting Rajasthan revenue: CM Ashok Gehlot

    By PTI

    KOTA: Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Wednesday lashed out at the Centre holding it responsible for the incessant rice in prices of essential commodities and also for bringing down the revenue of states.

    He urged the central government to formulate policies that strengthened the states and raised their revenue.

    Addressing a public assembly at Jorwarpura village in Pipalda area of Kota district, Gehlot claimed that the rise in prices was because of the Centre’s “faulty policies” and that the country was witnessing such steep hikes for the first time since Independence.

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    “The prices of petrol and diesel continued to rise and crossed Rs 100 per litre. They now cost around Rs 113-Rs 115 per litre. With the recent cut announced by the Centre on the excise tax, Rajasthan is set to lose around Rs 550 crore,” he said.

    The chief minister, however, urged the Narendra Modi-led government to further reduce the fuel prices by Rs 10-15 per litre, saying though this would mean a loss of around Rs 3,500 crore for the state, his government would bear it “in public interest”.

    Gehlot said it was not fair on the part of the Centre to pressure the states to reduces taxes but it was the responsibility of the central government to strengthen the states and formulate policies that would raise their revenue.

    He alleged the central government had reduced the state’s share in several schemes.

    The chief minister, accompanied by president of Rajasthan Congress Govind Singh Dotasra, landed in a helicopter here and inspected the ‘Prashasan Gaon Ke Sangh’ camp being held in the gram panchayat.

    ​ALSO READ | Symbolic reduction in excise duty on petrol, diesel will not bring down inflation: Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot

    At least 22 departments of the state government have set up their counters to sort out revenue, land, pension, water and electricity connection-related issues among others of the people.

    The chief minister reviewed the working of these counters and took feedback from the people.

    He handed over a wheelchair to a local specially-abled woman, Manjubai, asked her the reason for her disability and gently pushed her in the wheelchair in order to explain how it worked.

    Gehlot termed the ‘Prashashan Gaon Ke Sangh’ camp a great success in addressing the grievances of the public.

    At least 5,941 camps under the initiative have been organised so far in 352 panchyats of the state and over 6.09 lakh cases of mutation, 5.6 lakh cases of record correction, over 4,900 cases of residential land allotment, 6.55 lakh cases of various certificates, 70,000 cases of social security pension and over 31,300 cases of dispute over ways have been sorted out, he claimed.

    Later in the day, Gehlot also visited another camp at Thikerda village of Hindoli Panchyat Samiti in Bundi district.

  • Will intensify protests if TMC govt doesn’t reduce VAT on fuel, warns Bengal BJP chief Sukanta Majumdar

    By PTI

    KOLKATA: West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar on Sunday said his party will intensify its protest against the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government for not reducing VAT on fuel and threatened to march to state secretariat ‘Nabanna’ with ‘thousands of its supporters’ in future if their demand is not fulfilled.

    The Centre had on November 3 slashed excise duties on petrol and diesel by Rs 5 and Rs 10 per litre respectively and urged the states to reduce Value Added Tax (VAT), a revenue enjoyed by the state, on fuel to give further relief to people.

    Over 20 states, mostly NDA -ruled ones, followed suit by reducing VAT on fuel, but some states, including West Bengal, have not done so.

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    The eastern state, instead, urged the Centre to reduce the base price of oil and restructure the Centre-state tax structure.

    Majumdar told reporters during a protest rally by the BJP at Baruipur in South 24 Parganas district that once the COVID-19 restrictions on the congregation of people are lifted by the government, “we will march towards ‘Nabanna’ with thousands of our supporters demanding immediate reduction of VAT for giving some benefit to the common man.”

    The rally turned unruly with the protestors squatting on the road and raising slogans against the state government when the police prevented the processionists from proceeding beyond the Baruipur flyover.

    Alleging that the law enforcers were stopping a democratic movement under instructions from the ruling party, Majumdar said, “The police have become a slave of their political masters here”.

  • ‘Difficult for middle class to travel even by road’: Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on rising fuel prices

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Monday took a dig at the government, saying it promised to make those wearing ‘hawai chappals’ travel by air but it has hiked the prices of petrol and diesel so much that it has become difficult for the middle class to travel even by road.

    The Congress general secretary’s attack on the government came over auto fuels now costing a third more than the rate at which aviation turbine fuel (ATF) is sold to airlines.

    Tagging a media report on it, Gandhi tweeted, “Had promised that those wearing ‘Hawai chappals’ (slippers) will travel by airplane. But the BJP government has hiked the prices of petrol and diesel so much that now it has become difficult for those wearing ‘Hawai chappals’ and the middle class to travel even by road.”

    ​ALSO READ | Congress slams ‘catastrophic mishandling’ of economy, asks Centre to reduce excise duty on fuel

    She used the hashtag ‘BJP lai mehenge din (BJP has brought expensive days)’ with her tweet.

    Petrol and diesel prices on Sunday were hiked again by 35 paise a litre and after this hike the auto fuel was now costing a third more than the rate at which ATF is sold to airlines.

    The price of petrol in Delhi rose to its highest-ever level of Rs 105.84 a litre and Rs 111.77 per litre in Mumbai, according to a price notification of state-owned fuel retailers.

    In Mumbai, diesel now comes for Rs 102.52 a litre; while in Delhi, it costs Rs 94.57.

    Petrol used in two-wheelers and cars now costs 33 per cent more than the price at which aviation turbine fuel (ATF) is sold to airlines.

    ATF in Delhi costs Rs 79,020.16 per kilolitre or Rs 79 per litre.

    All the figures are as per Sunday’s hike.