New Delhi, November 30: Petrol in India is costlier than in its neighbouring countries and in the US, primarily because of high taxes.
Petrol in Delhi today costs Rs 66.42 per litre as against Rs 44.88 a litre price in the US, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas R P N Singh told Rajya Sabha in a written reply to a question.
Even after the November 16 reduction of Rs 2.22 per litre in rates, petrol at Rs 66.42 a litre in Delhi is costlier than Rs 48.64 a litre in Pakistan.
Whereas in Sri Lanka it is Rs 61.38 per litre, Rs 52.42 a litre in Bangladesh and Rs 65.26 per litre in landlocked Nepal. Incidentally, Nepal does not have a refinery and imports all its requirement from India.
However, petrol in Europe is costlier than in India. In the UK, it is priced at Rs 104.60 per litre.
Singh said of the Rs 66.42 per litre price of petrol in Delhi includes Rs 26.59 a litre because of taxes (both central excise and local sales tax or VAT).
The US has only Rs 5.32 per litre tax on petrol while it is Rs 62.47 a litre in UK.
Petrol price in India has risen 39 percent, or Rs 18.49 per litre, since April 2010.
Petrol in Delhi cost Rs 47.63 per litre last year.
The hike in rates in Pakistan is lower at 26 percent – from Rs 38.74 per litre to Rs 48.64 a litre. Sri Lanka has seen a 36 percent increase from Rs 45.23 per litre in April 2010 to Rs 61.38 a litre at present.
In Nepal, petrol price went up from Rs 49.98 per litre to Rs 65.26 a litre currently, an increase of 31 percent.
Nearly 45 percent of the current retail price of petrol in Delhi is made up of taxes.
The refinery price of petrol is just Rs 36.82 per litre, on top of which Rs 2.25 in inland freight and marketing cost and margin is added. Besides, Rs 14.78 per litre is the excise duty component and Rs 11.07 a litre is the sales tax that Delhi government charges. Another Rs 1.50 is the commission that petrol pump dealers earn.
–PTI