NEW DELHI: As the prices of petrol and diesel touched an all-time high on Sunday, the public urged the Central Government to come up with a plan to tackle the problem of ever-rising fuel prices.
The petrol and diesel prices have been increased by 17 paise a litre and 21 paise per litre respectively in Delhi, as the national petroleum companies hiked the prices for the seventh straight day.
With this, petrol prices hit a 56-month high of Rs 76.24 per litre while diesel prices touched a record high of Rs 67.57 in the national capital.
As the hike is all set to burn a bigger hole in commuters' pockets, a local in Delhi urged the government to bring down the prices and said, "The government must bring down prices of petrol. They must reduce excise duty and use other measures. The prices are already so high."
Fuel rates vary from state to state depending on the local sales tax or VAT.
Mumbai residents are also facing the brunt of fuel price hike as a local said, "Why are prices so high in Mumbai when it is comparatively lower in Gujarat and Delhi? It is tough for those who have to travel everyday. We shell out Rs 120 for petrol regularly."
In Mumbai, the petrol and diesel prices were hiked to Rs 84.07 and Rs 71.94 per litre respectively.
It is to be noted that fuel prices in Delhi are the cheapest in all metros and most state capitals.
In April, Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the Centre and the state governments have been considering bringing the petroleum products under the ambit of Goods and Services Tax. (ANI)