Petrol and diesel prices remained unchanged on February 22, a notification issued by state-owned fuel retailers showed, with no change in rates for more than 100 days now.
The last rate cut was by Delhi when it reduced the local sales tax, or the value-added tax (VAT), on petrol from 30 to 19.4 percent from December 1 midnight, bringing down the price by around Rs 8 to Rs 95.41 a litre. Diesel price remains unchanged in the national capital at Rs 86.67 a litre.
A few state governments are providing some relief. Nagaland which decreased the tax on petrol and other motor sports from 29.80 percent to 25 percent per litre, saving Rs 2.22 per litre. Diesel tax rates were also reduced from Rs 11.08 to Rs 10.51 per litre. Other states like West Bengal, Rajasthan, Assam, and Meghalaya have lately slashed their petrol and diesel rates.
On November 3, the Centre had gone for the deepest excise duty cut ever to cool retail prices from record highs, reducing the duty on petrol by Rs 5 and on diesel by Rs 10. Many states and union territories followed the Centre's led to give further relief to consumers.
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In Mumbai, a November 4 cut reduced the price of petrol to Rs 109.98 a litre, which remains unchanged. Diesel is at Rs 94.14 a litre.
In Kolkata, petrol and diesel prices remained at Rs 104.67 and Rs 89.79. Petrol sold at Rs 101.40 and diesel at Rs 91.43 in Chennai.
The states and union territories cut VAT after the Centre reduced excise duty include Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Sikkim, Mizoram, Daman and Diu, Karnataka and Puducherry.
States that have, so far, not lowered VAT are largely opposition ruled states including Maharashtra, Jharkhand and Tamil Nadu. TMC-governed West Bengal, Left-ruled Kerala, TRS-led Telangana and YSR Congress-ruled Andhra Pradesh have also not cut VAT.
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The Congress-ruled Punjab has seen the biggest drop in petrol prices after it slashed VAT the most. The union territory of Ladakh has seen the biggest drop in diesel rates.