The government of India has cut down prices of petrol and diesel by Rs 2 a litre starting today. This means a motorist in Delhi will pay Rs 94.72 a litre for petrol, and Rs 87.62 a litre for diesel. Simiarly, Maharashtra will see the retail price of petrol and diesel at Rs 92.15 a litre and Rs 104.21 a litre respectively.
Interestingly, the union territory of Andaman & Nicobar continues to see the cheapest price of fuel at Rs 84.10 a litre for petrol and Rs 79.74 a litre for diesel. On the other hand, Andhra Pradesh pays the highest price at Rs 109.99 a litre for petrol and Rs 97.75 a litre for diesel respectively.
The Oil Ministry states that the reduction in petrol and diesel prices will boost consumer spending and reduce operating costs for over 58 lakh heavy goods vehicles running on diesel, 6 crore cars and 27 crore two-wheelers.
What’s interesting to note is that the announcement comes close by to the announcement of General Elections 2024.
To better understand how the retail price of petrol and diesel is determined/calculated in India, please check the table below.
| Petrol | Diesel | ||
| Price to dealers (excluding excise duty & VAT) | Rs 57.30 | Price to dealers (excluding excise duty & VAT) | Rs 58.12 |
| Excise duty | Rs 19.90 | Excise duty | Rs 15.80 |
| Dealer commission (avg) | Rs 3.83 | Dealer commission (avg) | Rs 2.62 |
| VAT (including VAT on dealer commission) applicable for Delhi @ 19.4% | Rs 15.72 | VAT (including VAT on dealer commission) applicable for Delhi @ 16.75% and Air Ambience Charges @ RS 0.25/litre | Rs 13.11 |
| Retail price | Rs 96.76 | Retail price | Rs 89.66 |
