The Centre has waived excise duty on select variants of ethanol-blended petrol in a move aimed at encouraging cleaner fuel adoption and boosting the use of biofuels.
According to a notification issued by the Finance Ministry, the duty waiver applies to E22, E25, E27 and E30 variants of petrol.
In the notification, the ministry said excise duty will be 'nil' on petrol with 22 per cent, 25 per cent, 27 per cent and 30 per cent ethanol blend.
The decision is aimed at incentivising consumers to shift towards higher ethanol-blended fuel variants as part of the government’s broader push to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and crude oil imports.
The move comes amid rising fuel prices, with petrol and diesel rates having increased by nearly Rs 7.50 per litre in the second half of May.
In March, the government had cut excise duty on petrol and diesel by Rs 10 per litre, sacrificing more than Rs 1 lakh crore in annual revenue to cushion domestic consumers from the sharp rise in global crude oil prices triggered by the West Asia conflict.
(With inputs from PTI)