Petrol, diesel prices hiked for fifth time in 6 days as Cong plans protests

Petrol and diesel in Delhi are selling at Rs 99.11 per litre and Rs 90.42 per litre Sunday morning after prices increased by 50 and 55 paise.

State-owned oil companies on Sunday hiked petrol price by 50 paise a litre and diesel by 55 paise: the fifth time they did so in six days, provoking Opposition parties to announce protests.

Petrol and diesel in Delhi are selling at Rs 99.11 per litre and Rs 90.42 per litre this morning after prices increased by 50 and 55 paise. In Mumbai, petrol and diesel are selling at Rs 113.88 and Rs 98.13.

In Chennai, petrol is selling at Rs 104.90 and diesel at Rs 95.00. In Kolkata, petrol is at Rs 108.53 and diesel at Rs 93.57. Rates natiowide depending upon local taxes imposed by states.

The Congress party on Saturday said the fuel price hikes were "shameless fleecing" of the public and it will hold nationwide protests on March 31. Congress MPs last week protested near the Mahatma Gandhi statue in Parliament House, demanding a discussion on fuel price hike.

After a four-and-half-month pause, prices were hiked on March 22. In all, petrol prices have gone up by Rs 3.70 per litre and diesel by Rs 3.75 in six days, PTI reported.

Fuel price hikes were put on hold November 4, ahead of assembly elections in four states -- a period during which the cost of crude oil increased by about $30 per barrel.

Moody's Investors Services said last week state-owned retailers together lost around $2.25 billion (Rs 19,000 crore) in revenue for keeping petrol and diesel prices on hold during the elections.

CRISIL Research has said a Rs 9-12 per litre increase in retail price will be required for a full pass-through of an average $100 per barrel crude oil and Rs 15-20 a litre hike if the average crude oil price rises to $110-120, according to PTI.