Prices of diesel may go up by Rs 4-5/ltre

May 28, 2012

dies

New Delhi, May 28: After a steep hike in petrol prices last week, the government is bracing itself to bite another bullet on diesel front whereas there are indications that there may be a slight cut in petrol price.

A ministers’ meeting on controlled fuel, coming anytime after May 31, may decide on a Rs 4 to Rs 5 per litre rise in diesel prices.

Official sources said the hike could be in the range of Rs 4 to Rs 5 per litre on diesel, although the demand was somewhere around Rs 12 per litre.

“The huge subsidy on diesel, LPG and Kerosene has almost thrown government’s finances in a disarray and the revision is warranted in order to check that,” the sources said on condition of anonymity.

The state-owned oil companies currently are losing Rs 512 crore per day on selling diesel, domestic LPG and kerosene. Diesel is currently sold at a loss of Rs 15.35 a litre, kerosene at Rs 32.98 per litre loss and oil firms lose Rs 479 on sale of every 14.2 kg domestic LPG cylinder.

However, there was no reason given behind why the meeting would take place only after May 31, but analysts said that the government battling a backlash from within and outside due to a steep Rs 7.50 a litre hike in petrol prices, is perhaps buying time to let frayed nerves cool before calling the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM), where UPA’s allies and critics of price hike, the TMC and DMK, are also represented.

The EGoM on oil headed by Pranab Mukherjee was due to meet last week. The ministers’ meeting on revision of diesel, LPG and kerosene prices has not taken place since July 2011.

Petrol price cut

Amid protests and a call for an opposition-sponsored bundh on May 31, a slight revision in petrol prices is possible before this month end, a little ahead of the next revision cycle for petroleum prices.

“We are planning to revise petrol prices as the global crude has stabilised in the past fortnight. The volatility in rupee is still posing some problem, but we will see how far it can be done,” a top source from one of the leading oil companies told Deccan Herald.

“The revision may even come before May 31,” he said without giving details of how much cut could be effected. But sources said the cut could be to the tune of Rs 2 to Rs 3.

Oil companies revise petrol prices on the 1st and 16th of every month on the basis of average international price of crude and exchange rate during the previous fortnight.

A day after the steepest ever hike to the tune of Rs 7.50 per litre in petrol prices, Indian Oil Company chairman R S Butola had said the firms will pass on the benefit to consumers in the next revision cycle as the international oil prices showed some softening trend.

But, analysts are reading the possible revision ahead of the schedule as government’s strategy to avoid any confrontation with the Opposition.

Aware of widening price difference between petrol and diesel, the finance ministry is looking at the possibility of raising excise duty on diesel cars, a demand which was overlooked in the Budget 2012-13.

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Agencies
May 17,2020

New Delhi, May 17: With the highest-ever spike of close to 5,000 cases in the past 24 hours, the COVID-19 count in India has crossed 90,000 on Sunday.

With an increase of 4,987 COVID-19 cases being reported in the last 24 hours, the count has reached 90,927, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

The total number of active cases in the country stands at 53,946 today, while 2,872 deaths have been recorded due to the infection so far, with one patient having migrated. 120 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours.

However, on the positive side, close to 4,000 patients have also been cured and discharged in the past 24 hours, taking the tally of cured patients to 34,108.

With 30,706 confirmed cases, Maharashtra remains the worst-affected by the infection in the country.

It is followed by Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, with 10,988 and 10,585 cases, respectively.
The national capital, with 9,333 cases, is also one of the regions which is badly affected by the infection.

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News Network
March 16,2020

Mar 16: A fourth batch of 53 Indians returned to India from Iran on Monday, taking the total number of people evacuated from the coronavirus-hit country to 389.

This comes a day after over 230 Indians were brought back from Iran to New Delhi and quarantined at the Indian Army Wellness Centre in Jaisalmer, the third batch to be evacuated from that country.

"Fourth batch of 53 Indians - 52 students and a teacher - has arrived from Tehran and Shiraz, Iran. With this, a total of 389 Indians have returned to India from Iran. Thank the efforts of the team @India_in_Iran and Iranian authorities," Jaishankar tweeted.

The Indians came in a Mahan Air flight that landed at the Delhi airport at around 3 am, officials said, adding that they were later taken to Jaisalmer in an Air India flight for being quarantined.

The first batch of 58 Indian pilgrims were brought back from Iran last Tuesday and the second group of 44 Indian pilgrim arrived from there on Friday.

Iran is one of the worst-affected countries by the coronavirus outbreak and the government has been working to bring back Indians stranded there. Over 700 people have died from the disease in Iran and nearly 14,000 cases have been detected.

Jaishankar had told Rajya Sabha last week that the government was focusing on evacuating Indians stranded in Iran and Italy as these countries are facing an "extreme situation".

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News Network
January 17,2020

Mumbai, Jan 17: A 68-year-old convict of the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case, Jalees Ansari, went missing on Thursday morning while being on parole, officials said.

Ansari, a resident of Mominpura in Agripada here who is serving a life term, is suspected to be involved in many bomb blast cases across the country, an official said.

He was on parole for 21 days from the Ajmer Central Prison, Rajasthan, and was expected to surrender before prison authorities on Friday, he said.

During the parole period, he was ordered to visit the Agripada Police Station everyday between 10.30 am and 12 pm to mark his attendance, he said.

However, Ansari did not visit the police station on Thursday during the designated time, the official said.

In the afternoon, his 35-year-old son Jaid Ansari approached the police station with a complaint about his “missing” father, he said.

According to the complaint, Jalees Ansari woke up in the early hoursand told family members he is going to offer namaz, but did not return home.

On his complaint, the Agripada Police registered a missing case, he said.

The Crime Branch of the Mumbai Police and the Maharashtra ATS have launched a massive manhunt to trace him, he said.

Jalees, who is known as Doctor Bomb, was allegedly connected with terror outfits like SIMI and Indian Mujahidin and taught terror groups how to make bombs, he said.

He was also questioned by the NIA in 2011 in connection with the 2008 bomb blast in Mumbai, he said.

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