Govt raises petrol price by Rs4.45, cuts high speed diesel by Rs2

The government has reduced the price of petrol by Rs and the price of high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs per litre.

After the reduction, the petrol will be available for Rs333.01 per litre, and HSD will be available for Rs383.86 per litre. The government is still collecting Rs110 per litre in taxes and duties on petrol and Rs96 per litre on diesel.

In the notification released by the Petroleum Division, the prices have been set applicable for Thursday i.e. August 6.

This is a reduction from the record high price of Rs520.35 which was charged on diesel on April 3. After the start of the US-Iran war on February 28, the price of the diesel started increasing from Rs281 per litre. In petrol, the price had reached a record high of Rs458.41 on April 3, starting from Rs266 per litre in the first week of March.

Before this, the Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik announced that the prices of the fuel would now be set on a daily basis because of fluctuations in the international market price due to the new war between Iran and the US.

Since early March, the government has been announcing weekly revision in the prices of the fuel along with measures for fuel conservation due to potential disruption in oil supply in view of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East region. In April, the government announced certain relief measures for provision of subsidised fuel.

According to the petroleum minister, the cabinet and the prime minister have decided that Ogra should take up the responsibility for fixing the fuel prices on a daily basis taking into account the international market trend.

This move has been opposed by the All Pakistan Dealers Association as it is considering the protest plan against this decision.

While petrol is mainly used in private transport, small vehicles, rickshaws and two-wheelers, and any change in its price directly affects the middle and lower-middle class people.

Similarly, the price change in diesel affects all the masses as diesel is used mostly in heavy transport sector, power plants and generators.

Petrol and HSD are the biggest contributors in the revenue collection in the country, and the sales per month are about 700,000 to 800,000 tonnes as compared to only 10,000 tonnes of monthly demand for kerosene.