NEW DELHI: After a freeze of 137 days, petrol and diesel prices on Tuesday were hiked by 80 paise a litre each while domestic cooking gas prices were increased by Rs 50 per cylinder.
This will be the first hike after the price remained unchanged since November 4, 2021.
The hike is a fallout of a spike in global oil prices, especially after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. High global crude oil prices is a major concern for India as the country imports 85% of its oil demand.
Petrol in Delhi will now cost Rs 96.21 per litre as against Rs 95.41 previously while diesel rates have gone up from Rs 86.67 per litre to Rs 87.47.
The price of diesel for bulk users, such as public transport buses, trains, industries, airports and malls, was hiked by Rs 25 per litre on Sunday. This has increased the operational costs by 27% for such users, said sources in the oil marketing companies.
A 14.2-kg non-subsidised LPG cylinder will now cost Rs 949.50 in the national capital.
While LPG rates were last revised on October 6, petrol and diesel prices had been on a freeze since November 4 ahead of the assembly elections in states like Uttar Pradesh and Punjab.
Prices have been on a freeze since then despite the cost of raw material spiralling. International oil prices were around $81-82 a barrel in early November as against $114 now.
With global oil prices surging to record highs, the government is taking several measures to ensure there is no adverse impact on end-use consumers in India. The country relies on overseas purchases to meet about 85 per cent of its oil requirement, making it one of the most vulnerable in Asia to
Sources said a 5kg LPG cylinder will now cost Rs 349 while the 10kg composite bottle will come for Rs 669.The 19-kg commercial cylinder now costs Rs 2003.50.
India’s crude cost has topped $100/barrel on the back of surge in global benchmark prices and the US dollar breached the Rs 75-mark to widen the under-recovery on petrol and diesel to over Rs 10, making a prolonged spell of upward revision in fuel prices inevitable without tax cuts.
International oil prices have been on the boil ever since Russia put its forces on the Ukraine border last month. They spiked after it invaded the central Asian nation on fears that oil and gas supplies from energy giant Russia could be disrupted, either by the conflict in Ukraine or retaliatory western sanctions.
Russia makes up for a third of Europe’s natural gas and about 10 per cent of global oil production. About a third of Russian gas supplies to Europe usually travel through pipelines crossing Ukraine. —PTI

Press Trust of India