Petrol reaches 89.54 in Mumbai, crosses 90-mark in 11 Maharashtra cities
Petrol has surpassed the Rs 90-mark in at least 11 cities in Maharashtra (Representational Image)
The saga of spiralling fuel prices continued on Tuesday following yet another hike in the cost of petrol and diesel.
In Mumbai, petrol is retailing at Rs 89.54 per litre and diesel at Rs 78.42 per litre today. Meanwhile, in New Delhi, petrol and diesel are being sold at Rs 82.16 and Rs 73.87 per litre respectively.
Although Mumbaikars are facing the brunt of expensive fuel like the rest of the country, at least 11 other cities in the state have it worse.
Maharashtra has the highest fuel cost among all the states as it charges the highest VAT on the petrol and diesel at a little over 39 percent, including the Rs 9 surcharge on petrol and Re 1 on diesel.
While the state charges 25 percent value-added tax on petrol in Mumbai, Thane, and Navi Mumbai, it charges 26 percent in the rest of the state.
For diesel, VAT is 21 percent in Mumbai, Thane, and Navi Mumbai, and 22 percent in the rest of the state, with a surcharge of Re 1 a litre across the state.
As a result, even as petrol is inching closer to crossing the Rs 90-mark in Mumbai, it has already surpassed it in at least 11 other Maharashtra cities, including Parbhani, Nandurbar, Nanded, Latur, Jalna, Jalgaon, Hingoli, Gondia, Beed, Aurangabad, and Ratnagiri.
Apart from the additional VAT, the price in these cities more than Mumbai due to the higher transportation cost. In Parbhani, which has the most expensive fuel in the state, the price of petrol has crossed Rs 91 and diesel is set to touch Rs 80-mark.
A combination of a dip in rupee value against the US dollar and rise in crude oil prices has led to a spike in pump prices since mid-August. The rupee has lost over 13 percent, and crude has gained 35 percent, since the beginning of this year.
