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Petrol and diesel prices scaled fresh highs on Tuesday, a day after Bharat Bandh called by the Congress and opposition parties against soaring fuel prices.
Petrol price increased by 14 paise a litre to Rs 88.26 and diesel by 15 paise a litre to Rs 77.47 in Mumbai, according to a price notification issued by Indian Oil Corporation (IOC). In Delhi, petrol and diesel prices rose 14 paise each to Rs 80.87/litre and Rs 72.97/litre, respectively.
In Chennai and Kolkata, the price of petrol was hiked by 14 paise per litre. The revised price was recorded Rs 84.05 per litre and Rs 83.75 per litre in Chennai and Kolkata, respectively.
Diesel price in Chennai increased by 15 paise per litre taking the rate to Rs 77.13 per litre. In Kolkata, it increased by 14 paise per litre to Rs 75.82 per litre.
Since mid-August, petrol prices has been rising. In protest against this, Congress with other opposition parties called for Bharat Bandh. They blame the government's unwillingness to cut excise duty for high fuel prices and consumer burden.
The Centre currently levies a total excise duty of Rs 19.48 per litre of petrol and Rs 15.33 per litre on diesel. On top of this, states levy Value Added Tax (VAT) - the lowest being in Andaman and Nicobar Islands where 6 percent sales tax is charged on both the fuels.
Mumbai has the highest VAT of 39.12 percent on petrol, while Telangana levies the highest VAT of 26 percent on diesel. Delhi charges a VAT of 27 percent on petrol and 17.24 percent on diesel.
A cut in taxes on petrol and diesel is ruled out for now as neither the central government nor some states have the appetite to stomach revenue loss from such a move, a top government official told news agency PTI.
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