Petrol breaches Rs 91 mark in Mumbai after fresh hike in fuel prices

Prices of fuel witnessed yet another hike on Monday as the price of petrol went up by 24 paise and that of diesel increased by 30 paise in the national capital. With the latest hike, the prices of petrol and diesel in New Delhi are Rs 83.73 per litre and Rs 75.09 per litre, respectively.

In Mumbai, the petrol price breached Rs 91 mark to touch Rs 91.08 per litre. The price of diesel, after the hike, is Rs 79.72 per litre.

Despite the prices of petrol and diesel touching record highs with continuous hikes, the government has skirted questions on whether it is considering a tax cut on imported crude to bring down the prices.

At a press conference after GST Council meeting on Friday, Union Finance Minister was asked if the government was considering any relief measure to tackle the relentless rise in fuel prices. The Finance Minister skirted the question saying, “It was not in the agenda (of the GST council meet).”

As per India's pricing mechanism, the domestic fuel prices depend upon the international fuel prices on a 15-day average and the value of the Indian rupee.

Fuel prices have been witnessing a steep rise since the past few weeks. While the Opposition has repeatedly blamed the Union government for not doing enough to keep a check on prices, the latter has always maintained that global crude oil prices and other international factors are causing a hike in prices of petroleum products.