Petrol, diesel prices continue to rise for 16th straight day

New Delhi : Petrol and diesel prices continue to surge for the 16th straight day touching new heights. Price of petrol in Delhi on Tuesday, May 29, was at Rs 78.43 while the cost of diesel was at Rs 69.31 per litre. Petrol price was at Rs 86.24 in Mumbai while diesel was at Rs 73.79. Fuel prices have been rising across states.

The petrol prices have gone up by Rs 4 a litre since the 19 day strike ended post-Karnataka Elections. However, there are reports that golbal price of crude oil has started declining, with this fuel prices are likely to come down in coming days.

Following the news, crude oil slipped to $ 75 a barrel on Monday which was till last week trading at $80 per barrel.

Considering that tax form a major constituent of fuel prices, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan on Monday said, the government wants to bring petroleum products under the goods and services tax (GST) regime in the long run.

Pradhan told reporters, “I have already categorically stated this issue several times. The present oil price hike is due to three main factors — hike in the international price of crude, fluctuation in the dollar and Indian currency ratio and some of the tax issues are also there. For long-term solutions, the government of India is planning for a holistic strategy. Bringing petroleum products within the ambit of GST is one among them. We are sensitive, let’s see how things are unfolding.”