No plan to raise petrol, diesel prices after assembly elections: Govt Official
NEW DELHI, Apr 28 (PTI): The government has no plans to raise petrol and diesel prices, a senior official said on Tuesday, dismissing speculation of a hike after polling in West Bengal ends on April 29.
Retail petrol and diesel prices have remained unchanged for a record fourth year, even as conflict in West Asia has pushed crude oil costs up more than 50 per cent over the past two months. The widening gap between input costs and pump prices has left state-run fuel retailers incurring heavy losses – with some estimates pegging daily loss at about Rs 2,400 crore – fuelling speculation of an imminent price hike after politically charged assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Assam, Kerala and Puducherry conclude on Wednesday.
“There is no proposal to increase petrol and diesel prices,” Sujata Sharma, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, said at a news briefing on the fallout of developments in West Asia.
