Petrol price to be cut by Rs 2/litre from midnight

Petrol price to be cut by Rs 2/litre from midnight

Mangalore Today / NDTV

New Delhi, June 2: State-run oil refiners have agreed to a partial rollback of last month’s petrol price increase, an oil company source said on Saturday, responding to a public outcry over the steepest rise in the country’s history.

With effect from Sunday, retail petrol prices will be cut by Rs 2 a litre, the source said. Oil firms will reduce petrol price by Rs 1.68 per litre, excluding taxes. After including 20 per cent VAT, the cut in Delhi comes to Rs 2 per litre, sources said.

 

Indian Oil chairman and managing director RS Butola had said last week that the company will review prices on on June 1, 2012.

 Last month, state oil retailers - Indian Oil Corp, Bharat Petroleum Corp, and Hindustan Petroleum Corp - raised petrol prices by Rs 6.28 a litre, excluding taxes. The move came under intense criticism from masses and political parties alike. The opposition led by NDA had also announced a country-wid bandh on Thursday in retaliation.

PM’s economic advisor Dr C Rangarjan too said that the price should have been hiked in small steps. According to the chief advisor, the price hike was necessary to maintain fiscal prudence. He further advocated a rise in diesel and LPG prices.

Meanwhile, Oil minister S Jaipal Reddy on Monday ruled out any price hike in diesel, kerosene and LPG for now. He added that no date has been fixed for a meeting of the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM), whose consent is required for any increase in the price of these three regulated commodities. Finance Ministry sources, however, said that an EGoM meeting is likely on June 1.