New Delhi: After a hike in diesel prices, sources say a hike in petrol and kerosene prices is also on the cards. The government is reportedly under tremendous pressure from oil firms, who are losing a over Rs 550 crore per day. The hike in diesel prices was long overdue. Today fuel subsidies account for 32 per cent of the country's fiscal deficit with diesel being the main contributor. Last...
08:39 AM, Sep 14, 2012
New Delhi: At a late night meeting, the government finally mustered courage to take a decision which experts have said was needed. Diesel prices was hiked by Rs 5 though kerosene and petrol prices were not touched. The limit for subsidised LPG was also reduced to 6 per year. Sources said that at the CCPA both Oil Minister Jaipal Reddy and Finance Minister P Chidamabram once again reiterated the need...
08:21 AM, Sep 14, 2012
New Delhi: The government has finally bitten the bullet on fuel price hike raising the price of diesel by Rs 5 per litre and limiting the usage of LPG to six cylinders per household. Sources say the Sonia Gandhi-led Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs was against it, but were finally convinced by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to end policy paralysis and bring in big ticket reforms. But the the government...
07:55 AM, Sep 14, 2012
Chennai: Key UPA ally DMK on Thursday described the diesel price hike as 'very high' and unexpected and sought a roll back of the measure. Party chief M Karunanidhi said the hike would further affect the poor and the salaried class who are already reeling under high prices of essential commodities. He requested UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi to immediately convene the UPA coordination committee meeting to discuss the matter. Karunanidhi...
11:30 PM, Sep 13, 2012
New Delhi: Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, who is a key UPA ally, on Thursday slammed the government over the hike in the diesel price. The West Bengal Chief Minister claimed that she was not consulted on the diesel price hike issue. "I am shocked by the hike in diesel price, we were not consulted at any stage," said Banerjee. She added, "We are part and parcel of the UPAI...
09:24 PM, Sep 13, 2012
New Delhi: An increase in diesel prices in India should avert a credit rating downgrade for the country, C Rangarajan, chairman of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council, said on Thursday. India raised the price of heavily subsidised diesel on Thursday, in a politically risky move to rein in the fiscal deficit and fight the threat of being the first in the BRICS group of emerging economies to be downgraded...
09:07 PM, Sep 13, 2012
New Delhi: India raised the price of heavily subsidised diesel on Thursday, in a politically risky move to rein in the fiscal deficit and fight the threat of being the first in the BRICS group of emerging economies to be downgraded to junk. A cabinet committee agreed to raise diesel prices by 12 per cent, or 5 rupees per litre, and restricted sales of subsidised LPG cylinders to six per...
08:51 PM, Sep 13, 2012
New Delhi: The government on Thursday hiked the price of diesel by Rs 5 per litre, to be effective from midnight. The Cabinet Committee of Political Affairs (CCPA), however, decided not to hike the price of kerosene. The CCPA, headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, also ended the subsidy on branded diesel fuel saying it would be sold at market rates. In another major decision, it was decided that a...
08:34 PM, Sep 13, 2012
New Delhi: The Congress core group on Tuesday put on hold an immediate hike in the prices of petrol and diesel. The Congress party maintained that it was against the immediate hike. According to reports, Union Oil Minister S Jaipal Reddy and Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram argued in favour of the immediate hike at the core group meet. While a hike in the prices has not been ruled out...
07:59 PM, Sep 11, 2012
New Delhi: Political pressure from within the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) over fuel price hike forced the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs meeting, which was scheduled to be held later on Tuesday, to be postponed. While the Finance and Petroleum ministries want an immediate hike, pointing out that future economic reforms won't be possible without lowering subsidies, UPA constituents like the Congress and the Trinamool Congress are against the prosed...
03:12 PM, Sep 11, 2012
New Delhi: An increase in diesel, cooking gas and kerosene price is "unavoidable", Oil Minister S Jaipal Reddy said on Tuesday but indicated that the hike may not be decided by the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA) at its meeting later in the evening. "There is a meeting of the CCPA (this evening). This item (increase in diesel and cooking fuel) is not listed," he told reporters after meeting...
01:52 PM, Sep 11, 2012
New Delhi: The Central Government is in a bind over the increasing fuel prices as several UPA constituents are opposed to the move. Even as state-run oil companies like Hindustan Petroleum, Bharat Petroleum and Indian Oil Corporation say they are losing around Rs 15/litre on sale of diesel and approximately, incurring losses of Rs 200 crore each day on sale of this fuel, political pressure may force the government to...
01:05 PM, Sep 11, 2012
New Delhi: The prices of diesel, kerosene and LPG are likely to be hiked, according to sources. Sources say diesel prices are likely to be hiked by Rs 4 to 5 per litre, while the price of LPG is expected to be hiked by Rs 50 per cylinder. Oil companies will take the final decision on the price of petrol. According to sources, Finance Minister P Chidambaram and Petroleum Minister...
10:05 AM, Sep 11, 2012
The Washington Post and the writer of the story have categorically denied any question of an apology for criticising Manmohan Singh. ...
11:46 PM, Sep 05, 2012
New Delhi: To add to the woes of the common man who is already reeling under rising prices and blinding inflation, the government has pitched in with a diesel price hike that is likely to come into effect in two months. Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council Chairman C Rangarajan has said that the hike can be expected any time in the next two months. He, however, added that it was...
08:54 AM, Aug 21, 2012
New Delhi: The Indian economy is likely to grow at 6.7 per cent in the current fiscal year, C Rangarajan, chairman of the PM's economic advisory council (PMEAC) told reporters during the mid-year economic outlook on Friday. The PMEAC has also pegged the inflation between 6.5 and 7 per cent. In recent years, the advisory panel has been overly optimistic about India's economic performance, and the revised forecasts are higher...
12:15 PM, Aug 17, 2012
Chennai: Observing that the country's rising fiscal deficit was due to import of oil products, industry body FICCI on Sunday mooted the idea of decontrolling diesel prices or the government consider imposing higher duty on imported diesel cars. "Government should now think of decontrolling the price of diesel...", FICCI President Rajya Vardhan Kanoria said. Kanoria, who will chair the FICCI's National Executive Committee meeting in Chennai on Monday, told reporters...
10:34 PM, Jul 08, 2012
New Delhi: With economic concerns increasing, time is running out for the UPA claimed the government's Chief Economic Advisor Kaushik Basu. Speaking to Rajdeep Sardesai, Basu said that two reforms are the need of the hour - FDI in retail and partial deregulation of diesel prices. Pitching for decontrol of diesel prices, Basu suggested the government can start the process through a "gentle" rise in rates before leaving it open...
07:31 AM, Jun 20, 2012
New Delhi: State-owned oil firms have decided to "wait-and-watch" the international scenario and the rupee-dollar rate before deciding to cut petrol prices. "The Greece vote is behind us now. But the Fitch rating downgrade has led to a sharp fall in rupee against the US dollar. There is high volatility in the market. For now we will watch the situation," said a top official at one of the three state-owned...
08:17 PM, Jun 18, 2012
New Delhi: Unable to bite the bullet on diesel subsidies, the Finance Ministry is now looking to raise excise duty on diesel vehicles. Representatives of the auto companies on Wednesday met Finance Ministry officials to discuss the possible excise hike on diesel cars. The auto companies representatives also discussed the widening gap in petrol and diesel prices. According to the companies, the difference is unsustainable. Speaking about the possible move,...
04:49 PM, Jun 06, 2012
