Petrol, diesel touch all time highs as oil companies hike rates

Agencies
May 20, 2018

New Delhi, May 20: Petrol price today touched a record high of Rs 76.24 per litre and diesel climbed to its highest ever level of Rs 67.57 as the oil PSUs passed on four weeks of relentless rise in international oil prices to consumers.

Petrol price today increased by 33 paisa a litre in Delhi -- the highest since the daily price revision came into force in mid-June 2017, and diesel by 26 paisa, according to price notification issued by state-owned oil firms.

Rates vary from state to state depending on the incidence of local sales tax or VAT. Prices in Delhi are the cheapest in all metros and most state capitals.

With this increase, petrol has touched an all-time-high, breaching the previous high of Rs 76.06 touched in Delhi on September 14, 2013. Diesel rates are also at the all-time high level.

This is the seventh straight day of price increase since oil PSUs on May 14 resumed daily price revision after a 19-day pre-Karnataka poll hiatus. In all, petrol price has been raised by Rs 1.61 a litre and diesel by 1.64 in last one week.

In India, petrol is the costliest in Mumbai where high local taxes has led a price of Rs 84.07 per litre. Petrol has breached Rs 80 mark in Bhopal (Rs 81.83 a litre), Patna (Rs 81.73), Hyderabad (Rs 80.76) and Srinagar (Rs 80.35), according to the price notification.

Petrol in Kolkatta costs Rs 78.91 per litre while it is priced at Rs 79.13 in Chennai.

The cheapest petrol is available in Panjim where a litre comes for Rs 70.26.

Diesel is the costliest in Hyderabad were it is priced at Rs 73.45 a litre due to high local taxes. It is priced at Rs 73.34 in Trivandrum. Other cities where diesel rates have crossed Rs 70 mark are Raipur (Rs 72.96 a litre), Gandhinagar (Rs 72.63), Bhubhaneswar (Rs 72.43), Patna (Rs 72.24), Jaipur (Rs 71.97), Ranchi (Rs 71.35), Bhopal (Rs 71.12) and Srinagar (Rs 70.96)

A litre of diesel costs Rs 71.94 in Mumbai, Rs 70.12 in Kolkatta and Rs 71.32 in Chennai, the notification said.

Diesel is the cheapest in Port Blair where it is priced at Rs 63.35.

On Friday, Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg refused to say if the government will cut excise duty on auto fuel to ease the burden on consumers.

The government is watching the situation developing from oil prices hitting USD 80 a barrel -- the highest since November 2014, and adequate steps will be taken, is all he said said without elaborating.

Asked if the government would cut excise duty on petrol and diesel, he had stated that he has nothing to say on that front. "Just watch."

The BJP-led government had raised excise duty nine times -- totalling Rs 11.77 per litre on petrol and Rs 13.47 on diesel -- between November 2014 and January 2016 to shore up finances as global oil prices fell, but then cut the tax just once in October last year by Rs 2 a litre.

No sooner had Karnataka polled to elect a new state government, state-owned Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) on Monday ended a hiatus in revising petrol and diesel prices that began on April 25 and reverted to the 11-month old practices of changing rates on a daily basis.

Oil PSUs are estimated to have lost about Rs 500 crore on absorbing higher cost resulting from the spike in international oil rates and fall in rupee against the US dollar during the nearly three week hiatus.

The benchmark international rate for petrol, used for revising rate on April 24, had gone up from USD 78.84 per barrel to USD 84.97 on May 14. It has further risen to USD 84.97, indicating more daily hikes would be needed to level retail price with cost.

Similarly, benchmark international diesel rates during this period have climbed from USD 84.68 per barrel to USD 90.28 pr barrel. Also, the rupee has weakened to Rs 67.27 per US dollar from Rs 66.62, making imports costlier.

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Agencies
July 12,2020

Jaipur/New Delhi, Jul 12: The crisis in Rajasthan Congress has deepened with state Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his deputy Sachin Pilot at loggerheads.

While Gehlot is blaming BJP for trying to destabilise the state government by poaching MLAs, Pilot is camping in Delhi to speak to the party leadership regarding the political turmoil in the state.

According to sources, Pilot has sought an appointment with party's interim president Sonia Gandhi but time for the meeting has not yet been given by her. Although Pilot met another party leader to apprise him about the situation in the state and spelled out his grievance.

As of now, many MLAs, who are believed to be in the Pilot camp, are also in Delhi to meet the party leadership. According to sources, the deputy chief minister has the support of nearly 30 Congress MLAs along with many independent legislators.

It is important to note that the controversy broke out in Rajasthan after Special Operation Group (SOG) sent a notice to Sachin Pilot to record his statement in the case registered by SOG in the alleged poaching of Congress MLAs in the state. The clash between Gehlot and Pilot is also over the post of PCC Chief as Gehlot Camp wants that 'One Leader One Post' formula to be implemented in Rajasthan. Currently, Sachin Pilot is heading the PCC besides holding the Deputy CM post.

Sources close to Sachin Pilot have informed that the young leader is upset with the notice issued to him. He believes it is aimed to record his phone calls and keep him under surveillance. Many of Pilot's supporters feel indignation and told Pilot that they cannot work with Ashok Gehlot. Also, Pilot is unlikely to attend the meeting called by Gehlot today, according to sources.

While the top leadership of the party is keeping mum, sources say it is keeping a watch on the development. General Secretary KC Venugopal has taken up the matter of the rift with the party's top brass with them not happy about it.

Rajasthan AICC Incharge Avinash Pandey told media persons: "Everything is under control. Few MLAs had issues and after discussion, they have returned back to Jaipur and others are also in touch. BJP's attempt of destabilising the government will not be successful in Rajasthan and government is stable."

Gehlot also held a meeting with ministers last night in Jaipur.  According to Gehlot camp, the top leadership is apprised of the development of the poaching attempt in the state. Amid Political Crisis Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot called a meeting of Ministers and all Cong MLAs tonight at his residence.

The Rajasthan crisis has alerted the other senior leaders of the party who have opined that the Madhya Pradesh incident should not get repeated in Rajasthan.

Former Union Minister and Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibbal tweeted, "Worried for our party. Will we wake up only after the horses have bolted from our stables?"

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Agencies
January 11,2020

London, Jan 11: Former cricketer Sachin Tendulkar's famous lap around the Wankhede Stadium after the World Cup 2011 win has been nominated in Laureas's list for the most inspiring sporting event in the last twenty years.

The moment featuring Tendulkar has been described as "Carried on the shoulders by a nation".

On his sixth attempt at the World Cup and with India not having won the competition since 1983, Tendulkar finally became a part of the team that lifted the coveted trophy. Carried on the shoulders of the Indian team, he made a lap of honour, shedding tears of joy after the victory was sealed in his home city.

The 2011 World Cup was also the first time, in which a host nation ended up winning the trophy.

Apart from Tendulkar, England's Andrew Flintoff is the only other cricketer to feature in the list. In 2005, England managed to defeat Australia in an Ashes Test, but Flintoff chose to first shake hands with Brett Lee rather than celebrate with his side.

Matthias Steiner (weightlifting), Natalie du Toit (swimming), Sky Brown (skateboarding), Alistair and Jonathan Brownlee (triathlon), Xia Boyu (mountaineering) have been nominated in the list.

Female tennis stars also feature in the list for coming up with an equal play, equal pay campaign. After pressure from Venus Williams and others, Wimbledon announced that female tennis players would receive prize money equal to the men's.

German international footballer Miroslav Klose was playing for Lazio in Italy's Serie A in 2012 against Napoli when he rose for a ball in the early moments of the game.

The ball came spiraling off his hand and skirted into the back of the net and a goal was awarded. While most players would carry on as if nothing had happened, Klose was honest with the referee and admitted that he handled the ball.

As a result, he also finds a place on the list.

The Laureus Sporting Moment Award celebrates the moments where the sport has unified people in the most extraordinary way.

This campaign has shortlisted 20 sporting stories from the last 20 years that have left their mark on the world.

The winner will be decided on the basis of public voting. It has already started, and the final date to cast the vote is February 16.

Finally, the result will be declared on February 17.
With three knock-out rounds, the top-20 moments will be whittled down to ten then five, with the top-five moments going head-to-head.

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Agencies
August 3,2020

New Delhi, Aug 3: Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani on Monday thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the timely supply of food and medical assistance to meet the requirement in Afghanistan.

During their telephonic conversation, PM Modi also reiterated India's commitment to the people of Afghanistan in their quest for a peaceful, prosperous and inclusive Afghanistan, the Prime Minister's Office said in a statement on Monday.

The two leaders also exchanged views on the evolving security situation in the region and other areas of mutual bilateral interest.
Both leaders also exchanged greetings on Eid-Al-Adha. 

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