'People first for us': Government cuts excise duty on petrol, diesel
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After the cut in excise tax, petrol prices in India's capital Delhi will now cost Rs 95.91 a litre and diesel is set to cost Rs 89.67 a litre.
The government on Saturday slashed excise duty on petrol by Rs 8 per litre and on diesel by Rs 6 per litre.
Petrol prices in India's capital Delhi will now cost Rs 95.91 a litre and diesel is set to cost Rs 89.67 a litre. Petrol prices will now be slashed by Rs 9.5 per litre and diesel will cost Rs 7 per litre less after the excise duty cut announced by the finance ministry.
The government also announced Rs 200 per cylinder subsidy to Ujjwala Yojana beneficiaries. The import duty on raw material for plastics and steel has also been cut to ease inflationary pressure.
"It is always people first for us! Today's decisions, especially the one relating to a significant drop in petrol and diesel prices will positively impact various sectors, provide relief to our citizens and further 'Ease of Living'," PM Modi said in a tweet.
The move comes as India's inflation had hit a record 15.08 per cent in April and retail inflation had increased to 7.79 per cent.
Ujjwala Yojana has helped crores of Indians, especially women. Today’s decision on Ujjwala subsidy will greatly ease family budgets. https://t.co/tHNKmoinHH
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 21, 2022
"Ujjwala Yojana has helped crores of Indians, especially women. Today's decision on Ujjwala subsidy will greatly ease family budgets," India's prime minister added.
Watch: Petrol, Diesel prices soar in India
After the Indian government's announcement, the Kerala state government announced a cut in the state tax on petrol and diesel by Rs 2.41 and Rs 1.36 respectively.
In a tweet, India's finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said: "It will have a revenue implication of around Rs 1 lakh crore/year for the government." The finance minister urged state governments to also cut sales tax.
9/12 Also, this year, we will give a subsidy of ₹ 200 per gas cylinder (upto 12 cylinders) to over 9 crore beneficiaries of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana. This will help our mothers and sisters. This will have a revenue implication of around ₹ 6100 crore a year. #Ujjwala
— Nirmala Sitharaman (@nsitharaman) May 21, 2022
"I wish to exhort all state governments, especially the states where reduction wasn't done during the last round (November 2021), to also implement a similar cut and give relief to the common man," India's finance minister said.
(With inputs from Agencies)
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