In the fourth consecutive hike this year, oil marketing companies (OMCs) announced a Rs. 1.82 a litre hike in petrol prices late on Thursday evening, seeking to offset the fall in rupee's exchange rate that made imports of crude oil costlier.
Petrol will now cost Rs. Rs 68.64 a litre in Delhi, Rs. 73.74 in Mumbai, Rs. 72.64 in Chennai and Rs. 73.10 in Kolkata including local taxes. The new rates will be effective from midnight on Thursday.
The second hike in petrol prices in less than two months and the fourth this year was slapped on the common man on a day when the latest data showed that food inflation had risen dangerously to 12.21 per cent for the week ended October 22.
The hike in prices was announced by Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) late in the evening.
The three OMCs had earlier hiked petrol prices by Rs. 3.14 a litre on September 16 when the rupee was ruling at about Rs. 48 to a U.S. dollar. The local currency has since depreciated further. It closed at Rs. 49.14/15 against the U.S. currency on Thursday. The government had in June last year freed petrol from all price controls.
