Petrol price in Delhi was hiked by Rs 1.67 a litre on Tuesday and diesel by a steep Rs 7.10 per litre after the government raised value-added tax (VAT).
Petrol in Delhi now costs Rs 71.26 a litre, while diesel price has been hiked to Rs 69.39 a litre.
This follows Delhi government’s decision to raise VAT on petrol to 30% from 27% previously, PTI reported. In case of diesel, VAT has been almost doubled to 30% from 16.75%.
India’s fuel consumption slumped by close to 70% in April as the nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of Covid-19 continued. Demand showed signs of pick up in the last 10 days of April after the government announced some relaxations and allowed resumption of economic activity beyond the urban municipal limit, PTI said.
Oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan, in a Facebook message, also said that globally oil demand has evaporated due to lockdowns. “This is an unprecedented situation in the energy sector. Such a situation hasn’t been witnessed ever before”.
“India has also seen petrol, diesel and ATF demand crashing. Overall demand has fallen by about 70%,” he was quoted as saying by PTI. Pradhan said on Monday that the demand for fuel in the country is set to recover as restrictions ease on industrial activity and transport in some areas, NDTV reported.
(With PTI inputs)