With soaring prices of petroleum products burning holes in consumer’s pockets, people are increasingly seeking government intervention to cut taxes to provide some respite to the people.
Citing an example of the government of Meghalaya which has slashed petrol rates by Rs 7 per litre to give some respite to people, the business community has urged the government to implement the same line of action here.
Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma has informed that the prices of petrol and diesel will be reduced by Rs 7 approximately in the state.
“Both petrol and diesel will be reduced by approximately Rs 7. It is being done primarily to ensure that the consumers are not affected by the high prices in order to give some relief to them,” said the Chief Minister had told media persons.
The price of petrol per litre has touched Rs 93 in some parts of Kashmir, while in Srinagar it is around Rs 92.7 a litre.
According to officials, the invoice value of petrol is estimated around Rs 40 per litre, after taxes both state and central and dealers commission the price goes uptoRs 92.7 per litre.
“The government of Jammu and Kashmir must act quickly and reduce taxes to lower petroleum rates which are increasing at a rapid speed,” said co-chairman of Kashmir Economic Alliance, Farooq Ahmad Dar.
He said that the economy of Kashmir is facing many hardships due to losses it incurred during the past two years, therefore it is imperative upon the government to lower taxes so that common people will reap its benefits.
“Given the fact that J&K is heavily dependent on the central government for revenue, it wont make any big difference if they seek more funds from the centre for people’s benefit and also for the businesses to recover,” he added.
Generally, petrol and diesel prices in India have been rising unprecedentedly, pushing retail rates across states. Petrol soared above Rs 100 per litre in Rajasthan, which levies the highest VAT on fuel in the country.
As per the executives of oil market companies, the price of petrol in Kashmir has reached an all-time high with the rate of taxes too having reached its high.
People are facing heat due to continuous increase of petroleum prices. “I have stopped taking my vehicle to office as half of my salary was getting consumed on petrol purchase, it is better to ride a bicycle than to own a car given the fact that petrol prices are showing continuous increase,” said Firdous Ahmad, a local resident.