Press Trust Of India
New Delhi, Jan 16: Petrol price was Friday cut by Rs 2.42 per litre and diesel by Rs 2.25 a litre after an excise duty hike limited the benefit of global crude prices slumping to a six-year low.
The reduction would have been almost double but for the government also raising excise duty by Rs 2 per litre on both petrol and diesel Friday.
This is the ninth straight reduction in petrol prices since August, and fifth in diesel since October.
The new rates will be effective midnight Friday, Indian Oil Corp, the nation’s largest fuel retailer, announced here.
This is the fourth hike in excise duty since November and cumulatively customers have been denied the benefit of Rs 7.75 per litre reduction in petrol and Rs 6.50 a litre cut in diesel rates.
A finance ministry notification said the excise duty on unbranded petrol is being hiked to Rs 8.95 per litre and that on unbranded diesel to Rs 7.96 per litre.
The four excise duty hikes will result in about Rs 20,000 crore in additional revenue this fiscal and will help the government meet its fiscal deficit target of 4.1 per cent of the GDP.
Petrol and diesel prices were last cut on December 16 by Rs 2 per litre each.
