Like in most advanced countries, from May 1, 2017 petrol and diesel prices will change everyday as per rates in international market in selected cities in the country, including Chandigarh. Daily changes in prices is estimated to be less than a few paise per litre.
State-owned fuel retailers Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) owns over 95 per cent of nearly 58,000 petrol pumps in the country. They will launch a pilot for daily price revision in five select cities from May 1 and gradually extend it to all over the country.
ABOUT THE DAILY PRICE REVISION:
- It will begin on a pilot basis. The selected cities are Puducherry, Vizag in Andhra Pradesh, Udaipur in Rajasthan, Jamshedpur in Jharkhand and Chandigarh. After studying its impacts, it will gradually extended to whole country.
- The daily change in price will come in fuel from state-owned fuel retailers Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL). The three collectively own over 95 per cent of nearly 58,000 petrol pumps in the country.
- Currently, the fuel rates are revised on 1st and 16th of every month based on two things, average international price in the preceding fortnight and currency exchange rate. Now instead, pump rates will reflect daily movement in international oil prices and rupee-US dollar fluctuations.
- The daily price change will remove the big leaps in rates that comes into effect every 15 days. Consumers will become closer to market dynamics.
ABOUT FUEL REGULARISATION
- In June 2010, government control over deciding petrol prices was removed. In October 2014, diesel rats were deregulated too. Though the oil companies are free to revise rates but political considerations often guide the decision.
- Petrol price was last revised downward by Rs. 3.77 a litre on April and diesel rates were cut by Rs. 2.91. This was the first revision in two-and-half-months as oil firms did not change prices during assembly elections in five states, including Uttar Pradesh and Punjab.
- Rates differ by only a few paise between pumps of the three state fuel retailers.
- Daily changes in prices is estimated to be less than a few paise per litre. It is largely welcomed as the political pressures on price revision will go.
Source: NDTV
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