BENGALURU: Karnataka state government on Saturday hiked the fuel prices by Rs 3 following the hike in Karnataka Sales Tax (KST) on petrol and diesel. The hike comes with immediate effect.
The state government in a notification on Saturday, announced that it had hiked the sales tax from 25.92 per cent to 29.84 per cent on petrol and from 14.3 per cent to 18.4 per cent on diesel. With this hike, a litre of petrol which was at Rs 99.83 has gone up to Rs 102.85 per litre and diesel from Rs 85.93 to Rs 88.93 per litre.
Reacting to the development, Bangalore Petroleum Dealers' Association President Balaji Rao, said the hike in petrol now is due to state governments' move. He said that there will be an increase in Bengaluru where petrol which is currently selling at Rs 99.84 per litre will now be sold at Rs 102.85, while diesel selling at Rs 85.93 per litre will be sold at Rs 88.93.
Rao also added that Bengaluru Urban and Bengaluru Rural together has 1,500 fuel stations and hike in urban centers is to generate income. The petrol rate has been increased by Rs 3 and diesel by Rs 3.50 paise from Saturday onwards.
Soon as the news started to spread on various social media platforms, citizens started to make a bee- line at fuel stations to fill, before the rates were hiked. In some plaes the fuel stations, put up boards of no stock to revise the rates and start operations.
Citizens were heard saying that the move was done by the state government to generate revenue for the five guarantee schemes that would cost Rs 52,003 crore annually to state exchequer.
Following the hike, the state BJP unit took a dig at Congress stating that the government would even impose tax on people for breathing.
Karkala MLA and Chief Whip of BJP in assembly V Sunil Kumar said, “In the name of the guarantee schemes, the Congress-led state government is out to loot the people. By ordering for the hike in petrol cess, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is aiming to fill up the state’s empty coffers. In this year’s tax collection, the state government has fallen short of Rs 13,000 crore and to cope with this, it is burdening the common people.”
Kumar is also the General Secretary, BJP Karnataka.