The government on Saturday hiked the excise duty on petrol and diesel by Rs 2 per litre and road cess by Re 1, effectively a Rs 3 per litre hike on both commodities.
Petrol in Delhi on Saturday was selling at Rs 69.87 per litre while diesel is costing Rs 62.58 per litre. The decision came amid steep fall in global crude oil in a bid by the government to mop up additional money as it battles weak revenues.
Still, the prices of petrol and diesel are marginally lower than yesterday as the oil marketing companies have decided to absorb the hike and pass on some of the benefits to the consumer.
Global crude oil prices fell by as much as a third following Saudi Arabia's move to start a price war with Russia amid worries over the spread of coronavirus.