CM may reduce petrol, diesel prices after bypolls 

HUBBALLI:  With petrol and diesel prices crossing the Rs 100 mark in the state, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Sunday held out a promise to the suffering public, saying the state government will decide on reducing the fuel prices by effecting tax cuts.

However, the chief minister put a caveat, saying that any tax cut will depend on the state’s economy, which he will review after the by-elections to Hanagal and Sindagi on October 30.  It is a known fact that a customer pays twice the amount of crude price for petrol and diesel in the country.

In different parts of Karnataka, the price of petrol has been hovering between Rs 108 and Rs 110. The tax component per litre of petrol is Rs 59.19. Of this, the state government takes Rs 22.5, the Centre Rs 33 and the dealer commission is Rs 3.69.

For diesel, the state component is 24 per cent, which is collected as Value Added Tax and works out to Rs 17.89 per litre. Though there has been a demand to include petrol and diesel under GST to bring down the prices, the state governments have been opposing it as they will lose a large part of their revenues. 

BR Ravindranath, former president of Karnataka Petroleum Dealer’s Association, said in the state, over 60 lakh litres of diesel is sold per day through 5,500 outlets. Of this, 25 lakh litres are sold in Bengaluru Urban and Rural districts alone.