Govt Reduces Central Excise Duty on Petrol by Rs 8 & on Diesel by Rs 6/litre

GG News Bureau

New Delhi, 22^nd May. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday announced that the government has decided to reduce the Central excise duty on Petrol by 8 rupees per litre and on Diesel by 6 rupees per litre.

This will lower the price of petrol by 9.5 rupees per litre and of Diesel by 7 rupees per litre, Sitharaman said in a series of tweets.

FM Sitharaman said that it will have revenue implications of around 1 lakh crore rupees per year for the government.

The Finance Minister urged all state governments, especially the states where reduction was not done during the last round in November last year, to also implement a similar slash and give relief to the common man.

Sitharaman also declared that this year, government will give a subsidy of 200 rupees per gas cylinder upto 12 cylinders to over 9 crore beneficiaries of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana. This will have a revenue implication of around 6100 crore rupees a year.

Government is also decreasing the customs duty on raw materials and intermediaries for plastic products where the country’s import dependence is high. This will result in reduction of cost of final products.

FM Sitharaman said, customs duty is being regulated on raw materials and intermediaries for iron and steel to reduce their prices. Import duty on some raw materials of steel will be lessened.

Export duty on some steel products will be levied. Sitharaman said that measures are being taken up to enhance the availability of Cement and through better logistics to reduce the cost of cement.

Finance Minister Sitharaman said that the Narendra Modi government is devoted to the welfare of the poor and has taken a number of steps to help the poor and middle class.

She said that as a result of these initiatives, the average inflation during the Modi government’s tenure has remained lesser than during previous governments.

Sitharaman said that the world is passing through hard times today due to Covid-19 and Russia- Ukraine conflict that have brought in supply chain problems and shortages of various goods.

The Finance Minister pointed out that this has caused inflation and economic distress in a lot of countries.

Sitharaman said that even during the COVID-19 pandemic, the NDA government set a paradigm of welfare, especially with PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana.

She added that this is now recognized and appreciated across the world.

The FM stated that despite the challenging global situation, the government has ensured that there is no shortage of essential goods.

Sitharaman said that even a few developed countries could not escape some shortages and disruptions.

She stressed that the Modi government is committed to ensure that prices of essential items are kept under control.

Despite rising fertilizer prices globally, the Finance Minister emphasized that the government has protected farmers from such price hikes.

In addition to the fertilizer subsidy of 1.05 lakh crore rupees in the budget, an additional amount of 1.10 lakh crore rupees is being provided to further cushion the country’s farmers.

FM Sitharaman stated that PM Modi has explicitly asked all divisions of the government to work with sensitivity and give relief to the common man.