August 1, 2015: With effect from midnight of July 31, the prices of petrol was slashed by Rs 2.43 per litre and diesel by Rs 3.60 a litre in India. This is the third reduction in the month of July alone.
Starting today, the price of petrol in Delhi will be Rs 64.47 per litre as compared to Rs 66.90 previously. For a litre of diesel, the new price is Rs 46.12, instead of Rs 49.72.
The news was confirmed by Indian Oil Corp (IOC) in a statement.
In the last cut on July 16, prices of both fuels were reduced by Rs 2 per litre, which excluded local sales tax. For people in Delhi, the benefit didn’t have much effect, as Arvind Kejriwal government increased VAT on both fuels.
Delhi government had decided to hike the existing VAT tax from 20% to 25% for petrol.
As for diesel, the price was affected as the VAT was increased from 12.5% previously to 16.6%.
The statement also said that the prices of both diesel and petrol have decreased in the international markets since the last revision on July 16, adding that the INR-USD exchange rate has depreciated, though.
Combining both the factors demands a downward revision in prices, the benefit of which is being passed to consumers, the statement further added.
In general, Hindustan Petroleum Corp (HPCL), IOC, and Bharat Petroleum Corp (BPCL)- all state-owned fuel retailers, revise the prices of both fuels on 1st and 16th.
Thier decision will be depending on import costs and rupee-dollar exchange rate for the preceding fortnight.
