Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, said on Tuesday that oil companies will determine fuel prices, despite the fact that there will be no shortage of crude oil in the country.
Puri, on the other hand, stated that the government will make decisions in the best interests of the citizens.
He denied that the Centre had reduced fuel prices earlier due to elections and that the rates would be raised again after the elections.
Puri stated that the Centre had reduced petrol prices by Rs 5 per litre and diesel prices by Rs 10 per litre last year, but “young leaders” claimed it was due to Assembly elections in five states, the results of which will be announced on March 10.
He stated that people should consider other factors, such as the Ukraine-Russia crisis, to understand why rates were raised globally.
Oil prices are determined by global prices, and if there is a war-like situation in one part of the world, oil companies will take that into consideration. Prices will be set by the oil companies themselves.
Puri also claimed that when economic activity came to a halt as a result of the lockdowns imposed to stop the spread of COVID-19, global oil prices declined significantly.
Crude oil for March delivery traded higher by Rs 37, or 0.4%, at Rs 9,321 per barrel in 9,660 lots on the Multi Commodity Exchange.