No respite: Petrol crosses Rs 82/ltr mark in Delhi, close to Rs 89.5/ltr in Mumbai

The fuel prices were higher in Mumbai where the petrol and diesel are marching towards the Rs 90 per litre and Rs 79 per litre marks, respectively. Petrol in Mumbai now costs Rs 89.44/litre, up 15 paise/litre from September 16, when the price was Rs 89.29/litre.

The hike in the price of a litre of diesel was seven paise in Mumbai on September 17. Diesel now costs Rs 78.33/litre in the city.

The hike was slightly higher in Chennai, as compared to Mumbai and Delhi. The increase in petrol price was 16 paise/litre in the city, reaching a new high of Rs 85.31/litre. Diesel is priced at Rs 78/litre after recording an increase of six paise.

Another metropolitan city Kolkata followed the other cities. The revised prices were Rs 83.91/litre up 15 paise and Rs 75.63/litre up six paise for petrol and diesel, respectively.

Fuel prices have been on a rise since mid-August, rising almost every day due to a combination of a depreciation in rupee against the US dollar and the rise in global crude oil prices.

Rising fuel prices of the fuel have drawn criticism from the Congress and other opposition parties, who recently called for a nationwide shutdown to protest against it.

On September 16, the Congress took a dig at the BJP government over rising prices of petrol and diesel, saying they were headed towards a century and Prime Minister Narendra Modi should be congratulated for it.

Yoga guru Ramdev has also cautioned that price rise across the country, if not controlled soon, may prove costly for the Modi government in the next general elections.