Petrol in India has crossed Rs 100 per liter in almost all the cities barring a few and is getting costlier by 35 paise almost everyday. From October 4, 2021 to October 25, the average price of petrol has increased by more than Rs 8 here. You will be surprised to know that in the top-10 countries selling the cheapest petrol in the world, only 3 to 40 paise increased during this period. International crude oil prices may be rising, but in its poor neighbors like Sri Lanka and Nepal, petrol has become cheaper instead of expensive.
In Pakistan, only 4 rupees 64 paise increase in 3 weeks
According to the latest data from the website globalpetrolprices.com, the price of one liter of petrol in Pakistan (25 October 2021) was only 59.27 Indian Rupees. Whereas on October 4, 21 days ago, petrol was being sold here at 55.61 Indian rupees per liter of petrol. That is, in 3 weeks only 4 rupees 64 paise increased.
Somewhere 3 paise increased, somewhere 40 paise and somewhere the price decreased
The price of petrol in Sri Lanka was Rs 68.62 on 4 October and came down to Rs 68.35 per liter on 25 October. That is, instead of being expensive here petrol became cheaper by 27 paise. Even in a poor country like Bhutan, the price of petrol was only Rs 77 a liter on 4 October. On October 25, petrol here reached Rs 81.54 a liter. That is, in 21 days, petrol became costlier by Rs 4.54 per liter in Bhutan. If we talk about Nepal, then on October 4, the price of one liter of petrol was Rs 81.51 and on October 25 it was reduced to Rs 81.28. That is, petrol became cheaper here too.
Now let's talk about India. According to the data given on www.globalpetrolprices.com, on October 4, 2021, the average price of petrol in India was close to Rs 100, which rose to Rs 108.420 per liter by October 25. That is, an average increase of more than Rs 8 in 21 days.
These 10 countries have the lowest petrol price (25 October rate)
1) Petrol in Venezuela costs less than you think. The price of one liter of petrol here was Rs 1.49 on October 4. According to the rate released on October 25, there is no price right now.
2) Iran's name is second in terms of the cheapest petrol in the world. Here on October 4, a liter of petrol was available for Rs 4.46, but now it has become costlier by 3 paise to Rs 4.49 on October 25.
3) The price of a liter of petrol in Angola was only Rs 17.20 on 4 October, but on October 25 it increased by about Rs 3 to Rs 20.10.
4) A liter of petrol in Algeria was Rs 25.04 a litre. In 21 days, it became expensive by 7 paise and reached Rs 25.11.
5) Kuwait's name comes in fifth place in the countries that sell the cheapest petrol. Here the price of one liter of petrol was Rs 25.97 on October 4, it increased to Rs 26.13 in 21 days. That is, an increase of only 16 paise in three weeks.
6) Nigeria ranks sixth among the cheapest petrol selling countries in the world. The price of a liter of petrol here on October 4 was Rs 29.93 and reached Rs 30.14 here on October 25, an increase of only 21 paise in the same period.
7) Turkmenistan's name comes in seventh place among countries selling cheap petrol. Here on October 4, the price of one liter was Rs 32.01. In 21 days, the price of petrol increased here by only 10 paise.
8) Kazakhstan: The name of Kazakhstan is at the eighth place among the countries selling the cheapest petrol. Here the cost of one liter of petrol is Rs 34.20.
9) Ethiopia's name is at number nine in the list of top 10. The price of petrol here was Rs 34.70 per liter on October 4, which came down to Rs 34.40 on October 25.
10) Malaysia was last on 4th October last in the top 10 list of cheapest oil selling countries. Here the price of petrol was Rs 36.62 per liter. Now Kazakhstan's name is on this position and on October 25, the price of petrol here came down to Rs 34.74. Whereas, Malaysia is ranked 11th with Rs 37.04 per litre. Petrol increased by only 42 paise here in 21 days.
Why are petrol and diesel expensive in India?
There are two main reasons behind the inflation of oil. First crude oil and second tax. In India, the central government and state governments charge heavy taxes on petrol and diesel. Including VAT and excise duty, the tax is more than 60 percent. Apart from this, in most South Asian countries including Pakistan and Bangladesh, there is a tax of 45 to 60 percent on petrol and diesel, due to which the prices here have increased continuously in a few days.
Government should review the tax on fuel
The SBI report has advised the government to review the taxes on fuel. The reason for this has been told that 572 million people of the country are still associated with the unorganized economy. If we consider five people in a family, then the number of tax payers comes to about 114 crores, which is equal to the tax payers in the country. Adjusting for the consumption of people below the poverty line, these 114 million tax paying households contribute 65% of private final consumption expenditure to 8.5% of the population. In such a situation, if the government reviews the taxes on fuel, then this large population will get the benefit.
Prices will further bother consumers
The price of the Indian basket of crude, representing the average of Oman, Dubai and Brent, fell to $19.90 in April last year during the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic. This gave the central government an opportunity to sharply increase taxes on petrol and diesel, making excise duty one of the major contributors to the exchequer in FY21. Unless the tax is cut, any increase in oil prices will further trouble the consumers.
