Petroleum products should be brought under the ambit of the GST regime to check the increasing prices, Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has said.
Addressing mediapersons here on Tuesday, Mr. Pradhan said his Ministry had given a proposal to the GST Council in this regard. “It is up to the GST Council to decide on the quantum of tax. I think pressure from various sectors will force the council to bring the oil products under the uniform tax regime. When the country is moving to a one-tax regime, why should petroleum products be excluded from it,” he asked.
The uniform tax regime would bring more players and more competition into the market, which eventually would benefit the consumers, the Minister said.
For the past two decades, pricing of petroleum products had been linked to the internationals market. Since June 16, 2017, fuel retailers had been revising rates daily based on average international price. Benefit of even the smallest fluctuation in the international market would be thus passed on to consumers on a daily basis. Consumers’ interest would be protected in the long with the best price mechanism and we were already moving in that direction, the Minster said.
“As the crude oil price has declined in the past 3-4 years, to protect the revenue returns, Central excise and VAT have been increased. That is the reason why the consumer is not getting the benefit though the crude oil price had declined,” the Minister said.
Claiming that States were equally responsible for petrol/ diesel price hike, he said not only Central excise but VAT was charged on fuel price, increasing prices. In Kerala, VAT on petrol was 26% in 2014 and 34% now. Central excise had also increased. While VAT on diesel was 20% in 2014, it had touched 26.7 % now, Mr. Pradhan said.
Fund utilisation
To a question why the BJP had criticised the Manmohan Singh government for petrol price hike, Mr. Pradhan said the UPA government was not utilising the resources in a proper way. Money was being wasted in scams. There had not been even a single corruption charge against the Modi government, he said.
Mr. Pradhan was here to coordinate with local party units in Thrissur, Chalakuday, Kasaragod, Kozhikode, and Palakkad as part of the party’s preparation for the 2019 Lok Sabha election. Detailed discussion was held on grass-root level expansion of the party, he said.
