Despite a sharp fall in the prices of crude oil in the international market, there has been no change in the prices of petrol and diesel in the Indian market. State-run oil marketing companies have kept the prices of petrol and diesel unchanged across the country on Wednesday, December 22, 2021. Notably, it has been more than a month and a half now since petrol and diesel prices have seen any changes.

The last revision in the prices of petrol and diesel was seen at the beginning of November when the central government slashed VAT on fuels, providing relief to consumers from all-time high fuel rates. Since then, fuel rates have maintained stability across the country.

Currently, petrol is retailing at Rs 95.41 in Delhi whereas diesel prices have remained unchanged at Rs 86.67 per litre in the national capital.

In India’s financial capital, Mumbai, the rate of petrol stands at Rs 109.98 per litre while diesel is being sold at Rs 94.14 per litre. Notably, fuel rates are the highest in Mumbai, among all the four metro cities.

Meanwhile, in Tamil Nadu’s capital, Chennai, petrol costs Rs 101.40 per litre and diesel continues to retail at Rs 91.43 per litre. On the other hand, petrol can be bought at Rs 104.67 per litre in Kolkata and diesel costs Rs 89.79 per litre.

Crude oil prices on international market

On the international market, crude oil has reached below $ 72 per barrel. However, U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 50 cents, or 0.7 per cent, to $71.62 a barrel after jumping 3.7 per cent on Tuesday.

Amidst the fall in the price of crude oil in the international market, consumers are eagerly waiting for petrol and diesel to become cheaper in the domestic market.

Fuel rates in other Indian cities

In India, the prices of petrol and diesel vary from state to state and also in cities, depending on the incidence of local taxes like value-added tax (VAT) and freight charges.

Despite VAT cuts in the prices of petrol and diesel, petrol prices are still above the Rs 100 mark in several Indian states, including Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Odisha, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh.

In contrast, there are many cities where the prices of petrol and diesel are below Rs 100 per litre. This includes Port Blair, Noida. Chandigarh, Dehradun, Ranchi, Shillong, Panaji, Shimla, Lucknow, Delhi.

It may be noted that fuel rates are the cheapest in Port Blair, where petrol and diesel cost Rs 82.96 and Rs 77.13 per litre, respectively.

Among the metro cities, petrol and diesel are the cheapest in Delhi and the most expensive in Mumbai.

Petrol, diesel prices in major Indian cities:

It may be noted that fuel prices are revised by OMCs like Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum based on international prices in the preceding 15 days and foreign stock exchanges. Moreover, any changes in fuel rates are implemented with effect from 6 AM every day.