Why costly diesel burns a bigger hole in your pocket than petrol

While consumers feel the petrol pinch directly, diesel hurts indirectly, as it is an input in almost all the goods and services we use

Diesel, the most used retail fuel by almost all commercial sectors of the economy, is slowly crawling towards a record Rs 90 per litre in Mumbai. A gradual increase in retail fuel prices was expected, as the price of oil itself is inching up—Brent crude now costs more than $65 a barrel—and product prices are an indirect function of oil price. 

But the last time crude oil was this costly, a litre of diesel in Mumbai was available at Rs 70-72. Indians are paying Rs 15-20 more per litre of the fuel today than a year ago, courtesy high taxation