Aiyar rules out immediate fuel price increase

Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar today ruled out any immediate increase in fuel prices, though adding that there was a need to move to market-linked price for natural gas.

"Consumers have to come around to paying the market price. Whatever good intentions one may have, the price dimension and increasing cost of production cannot be ignored," Aiyar said at the Third National Gas Conservation Programme today.

While all possible efforts were being made to improve supply of crude and natural gas, it was important to conserve energy as it would reduce pressure on suppliers.

He added that agriculture was a potential area where energy conservation was possible and the local population had to be made use of for creating mass awareness over the issue.

"Energy conservation starts at home and there is wealth of resources available in terms of elected representatives to gram panchayats that need a direction to work in.''

He later told reporters that he would present to the Energy Co-ordination Committee headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh the options for bridging the gap between the cost of production and the retail selling price of LPG and kerosene.

"The most important task of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas is to constantly monitor prices of sensitive petroleum products. The Prime Minister and the Cabinet are made aware of all the facts from time to time," he said.

The minister said the government had the choice to either make no change in fuel prices despite the rise in costs or remove all controls and let market prices prevail.

Alternatively, there could be a middle path where prices were raised marginally and control continued. These options and their impact would be presented to the ECC on Friday, he said.