Petro duty cut rejected

Finance minister P Chidambaram on Monday rejected a duty cut on petroleum products to avoid an inevitable hike in petrol and diesel prices.

Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar, who had a 50-minute meeting with the finance minister on the issue of auto fuel pricing, will now meet Left parties to arrive at a consensus on raising petrol and diesel prices in line with the rising trend in global crude oil prices.

Aiyar made out a case that the budget for 2005-06 had necessitated a Rs 2.52 per litre hike in petrol and Rs 1.65 a litre increase in diesel prices and this hike should be rolled back to give customers comfort. Together with duty changes, the increased global oil prices warrant a Rs 4.59 a litre increase in petrol and Rs 5.18 per litre hike in diesel prices.