Opaque subsidies

Govt control returns to the oil sector

The government needs to be more transparent about its relationship with the state-controlled oil companies. Of the three public-sector oil-marketing companies (OMCs), it did exit Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL), though in fact it still retains control through HPCL’s part ownership by Oil and Natural Gas Corporation. It has also in the past claimed to have deregulated petrol and diesel prices and removed the burden of indirect fuel subsidies on the exchequer. These were major reforms and positive steps forward. However, in effect the government has now reversed this momentum. Instead of maintaining and increasing its effort to keep the