The petroleum ministry has asked the finance ministry to rationalise duties both on crude oil and petroleum products to contain the burgeoning oil pool deficit in the current financial year.
These measures should be initiated before the administered pricing mechanism (APM) is dismantled by March 2002.
Minister for petroleum and natural gas Ram Naik has suggested to finance minister Yashwant Sinha that customs duties on crude oil and major petroleum products be reduced to 5 per cent and 15 per cent respectively, as approved by the Cabinet in November 1997 for the last year, 2001-02.
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He has said that excise duties on petrol and diesel should be kept at the pre-budget level of 16 per cent and 12 per cent respectively.
Moreover, according to Naik, the Oil Coordination Committee (OCC) should be allowed to withdraw its deposit of Rs 4,429 crore from the public account. The minister has said that further corrections in the Cabinet approved duty structure can be effected in the budget proposals for 2002-03.
Naik