| India only nation where petrol, diesel prices declined in last 3 years: Minister | | |
Agencies
NEW DELHI, July 29: Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri today said India is the only country where rates of petrol and diesel have come down between November 2021 and April 2024. Replying to various queries during Question Hour in Rajya Sabha, the minister also informed that the government is encouraging dialogue between Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) and dealers regarding margins for the latter. Puri noted that petrol and diesel were deregulated during the UPA government.
Deregulation means that prices of the commodity in the market are not set by the government, he added.
"Prices here being high and elsewhere being low. It's exactly the opposite. In India today, the prices are the lowest and is the only country where prices have actually come down," Mr Puri said.
He attributed this to very bold, ambitious and farsighted decisions taken by the Prime Minister.
"The prices in the world, I am giving you a two-year reference period between November 2021 and April 2024. Why I'm doing this because we have prices available. In India the price of petrol came down 13.65 per cent and of diesel 10.97 per cent," the minister said.
However, he said in France the increase in petrol price has been 22.19 per cent, Germany 15.28 per cent, Italy 14.82 per cent, Spain 16.58 per cent. These are all published international figures of prices, he added Puri also highlighted that while prices in India have declined, the rates have gone up in neighbouring countries. The minister also attacked the UPA government for floating oil bonds. "Oil bonds were floated for ? 1.41 lakh crore. Today we are having to pay back ? 3.5 lakh crore for that kind of a farsighted decision," he said. On the dealers' margin increase, Puri said this is a commercial contractual situation between OMCs and the dealers whom they employ as part of that contract.
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