People may have paid through their nose for essential commodities amid the pandemic but the government earned a fortune by raising taxes on petrol, diesel and other petro products.
On Monday, the Centre informed the Lok Sabha that in the first three months (April-June) of the current financial year (2021-22), its total excise collection was Rs 1.01 lakh crore. This included the excise levy on petrol, diesel and other petro products such as ATF and natural gas. A major chunk of over Rs 94,000 crore came through the excise duty on petrol and diesel.
Last financial year (2020-21), its excise levy only through petrol and diesel soared by 88% to Rs 3.35 lakh crore after excise duty was raised to a record high. In 2019-20, the govt had collected Rs 1.78 lakh crore through excise duty.
Excise duty on petrol was hiked from Rs 19.98 per litre to Rs 32.9 last year. On diesel, it was raised to Rs 31.8 from Rs 15.83 a litre.
This led to excise collections on petrol and diesel jumping to Rs 3.35 lakh crore in 2020-21 (April 2020 to March 2021), from Rs 1.78 lakh crore a year back, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Rameswar Teli said in the Lok Sabha in a written reply.
Teli said during the current fiscal 2021-22, petrol price has been increased on 39 occasions and diesel on 36. The price of petrol has been cut on one occasion during this period and that of diesel on two occasions.
In the previous 2020-21, petrol price was hiked on 76 occasions and cut on 10 while diesel rates went up 73 times and were reduced on 24 occasions.
In 2018-19, excise collections on petrol and diesel were Rs 2.13 lakh crore.
Petrol prices have crossed Rs 110 per litre in certain states.
(Published 19 July 2021, 11:37 IST)
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