Petrol nears Rs 90/litre in Mumbai, over Rs 82 in Delhi
New Delhi, Sep 17 : Domestic fuel prices continued to scale new heights on Monday, with the price of petrol nearing the psychological Rs 90 a litre-mark in Mumbai with the fuel selling at Rs 89.44 under the dynamic pricing regime.
As per rates released daily by state-run Indian Oil Corp, the depreciating rupee and expensive crude oil further pushed petrol and diesel to new record highs on Monday.
Petrol in Delhi, which is cheapest among the four metros due to lower taxes, crossed Rs 82 on Monday, rising to Rs 82.06 per litre, while it increased in Kolkata and Chennai to Rs 83.91 and Rs 85.31, respectively.
Similarly, diesel prices rose on Monday in Delhi and Kolkata to Rs 73.78 and Rs 75.63 per litre, respectively, and climbed to Rs 78 and Rs 78.33 per litre in Chennai and Mumbai, respectively.
Fuel prices in the country have been rising almost daily since August 1. They fell only once on August 13 and have been on record levels for over two weeks now.
Sector experts say a weak rupee and high excise duty are major factors for the rise in fuel prices.
Inflationary risks along with broadly negative global cues depressed the Indian rupee to a new low of 72.91 against the US dollar.
Also, high global crude oil cost has become a major concern for the country, which imports over 80 per cent of its oil requirements. The UK Brent crude oil price hovers around $78 per barrel.
Since the start of the calendar year, the petrol price in Delhi has gone up by over 15 per cent from Rs 69.97 on January 1, 2018. The hike in diesel price has been even more steep. It has gone up by more than 22 per cent since January 1 when it cost Rs 59.70.
Last week, the West Bengal government reduced the excise on petrol and diesel by Re 1 per litre each.
The Karnataka government announced on Monday that petrol and diesel will be cheaper by Rs 2 per litre each across the state from Tuesday following the reduction in cess on these fuels.
As per the country's pricing mechanism, the domestic fuel prices depend upon the international fuel prices on a 15-day average and the value of the rupee.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Drug peddler's property worth Rs 1 crore attached in Srinagar
Srinagar (PTI): Property worth Rs 1 crore belonging to a notorious drug peddler was on Saturday attached in Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar, police said.
A double-storey house on eight marlas of land situated at Wantpora Eidgah, belonging to Basit Bilal Dar, a notorious drug peddler, valued at approximately Rs 1 crore, a police spokesperson said.
He said Dar is involved in two cases registered under various sections of the NDPS Act.
During investigation, it was established that the accused had acquired the said property through illicit proceeds generated from drug trafficking activities, the spokesperson said.
Consequently, the property was attached under the provisions of the NDPS Act. The attachment proceedings were conducted in the presence of the two independent witnesses, strictly in accordance with the prescribed legal procedures, he said.
As per the attachment order, the owner has been restrained from selling, leasing, transferring, altering, or creating any third-party interest in the property till further orders, the spokesperson added.
