The government has not yet decided on removing control over petrol and diesel pricing and allowing them to move in tandem with changes in global oil rates, Petroleum Minister Murli Deora said today.
Asked if the government had decided on free pricing of petrol and diesel, Deora replied in negative in the Rajya Sabha.
Currently, the government dictates the retail selling price of petrol and diesel, a regulation that saved the consumers from the brunt of spiking crude oil prices last year.
Had the pricing been freed from all controls, petrol and diesel prices would have risen by Rs 22-24 a litre in August after crude spiked to all-time high of $147 a barrel.
But with the easing of international oil prices, some quarters, including private firms like Reliance Industries, are demanding that the petrol and diesel pricing be made free.
"The open market pricing policy, if introduced, would increase competition among various oil companies," Deora said.
Current petrol price is only Rs 0.08 per litre higher than international gasoline prices, but diesel is being sold at Rs 3.26 a litre higher than international parity rates.
However, kerosene continues to be sold at a loss of Rs 24 a litre and domestic LPG at Rs 9 per cylinder discount.
