‘Consumers are not getting benefit of low crude oil prices’

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, March 14

Different sections of society are peeved over the Union Government’s decision to hike excise duty on petrol and diesel by Rs 3 per litre. They said the government was not passing the benefit of fall in crude prices to the people.

Retail prices of petrol and diesel will remain unchanged as oil firms would adjust them against the recent fall in crude prices in international market. The Punjab Pradesh Beopar Mandal (PPBM) has termed the government move anti-people.

Sameer Jain, general secretary of the PPBM, said all sections of the society, including, industralists, were already passing through difficult phase which was accentuated by Covid-19.

He said the government had repeated its 2014-15 act of not passing on gains arising from slump in international oil prices. He said the government was proceeding with the single objective of increasing profit of companies.

MK Sharma, a Congress leader, said instead of passing on fall in petrol and diesel prices to people as per global trends, the Central Government has not given the benefit to the people. He said the government should immediately pass on the hike to consumers after every decrease in the crude prices.

Oil prices have been coming down after the global spread of coronavirus.

‘Industrialists facing a tough time’

• Sameer Jain, general secretary of the Punjab Pradesh Beopar Mandal, said all sections of society, including industrialists, were already passing through a difficult phase which was accentuated by Covid-19.
• He said the government had also not passed on benefits due to a slump in international oil prices in 2014-15. He said it was proceeding with the single objective of increasing profit of companies.