While political parties are organising protests and social media users sharing jokes and complaints, consumers in Delhi say they have become used to the daily hike in petrol prices, which have increased by over ₹2 in the past nine days.
The price of petrol in Delhi shot up from ₹74.63 on May 13 to ₹76.87 on Tuesday.
At a petrol pump near Delhi Gate metro station, Aakash Shukla, a social activist who was refuelling his two-wheeler, said, “Now it is too much! Every now and then, there is a hike in the petrol price, and public transport is also not convenient. After all, metro and DTC buses cannot get inside the lanes”.
Seema Kumar, a cab driver who refuelled her car at a petrol pump near Model Town Metro station, said, “Petrol is so essential; even if it costs ₹100 per litre, we still need it. Obviously we have to manage our pockets and do cost-cutting elsewhere, but petrol is a basic necessity now”.
At an Indian Oil petrol pump near Model Town metro station, manager, Ajay Malik, said, “Despite the hike there have been no changes in the consumption of fuel because now people are used to it”.
‘Consumers unaffected’
He added since the price is increasing every day by smaller amounts compared to earlier hikes of ₹4 or ₹5, consumers are largely “unaffected”.
However, some staff at petrol pumps have noticed a change.
Lakhan Pal, a worker at the Indian Oil pump, said, “Now it has become normal for the public. Definitely we are not happy, but we cannot do anything about it any more. Earlier, we used to see long queues at midnight, but now we don’t see those long lines any more.”
