Union Petroleum Minister responds on the hike of fuel prices

Despite the Covid-19 pandemic and rise of unemployment in India, the petrol and diesel prices in the country continue to rise steadily. In most of the areas, the price of petrol has even reached Rs 100.

Now, Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has responded on this matter and blamed the recent surge in global crude oil prices for the fuel price hike in India.

Pradhan said the central government’s revenue had declined significantly because of the Covid pandemic. He explained that in the current situation, there is a need to spend significantly on the medical sector as well as the welfare sector.

The Minister clarified that reducing petro prices is not a viable option in the face of declining revenue and rising costs.

“The prices of petroleum products have gone up. The major reason is that the price of crude oil has gone over USD 70 (per barrel) in the international market. This negatively affects consumers here, as India imports 80 percent of its oil requirement,” he said.