The Modi Government Union Budget of 2018 took a different approach for excise duty on petroleum products. During the Budget day, the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has cut the excise duty on petroleum products and has proposed a levy of road and infrastructure cess of Rs.8 per liter on petrol and high-speed diesel oil in the Budget 2018-19. however, Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia said that the customers would not get the benefit since there is no change in the price.
While introducing Rs.8 as road cess, FM abolished additional excise duty on fuel by Rs 6, but the petrol prices have remained the same. The basic excise duty on unbranded petrol was slashed by Rs. 2 from Rs. 6.48 per litre and on branded petrol from Rs. 7.66 per litre. Similarly, on unbranded diesel, the additional excise duty was brought down from Rs. 8.33 per litre to Rs. 6.33 per litre and on branded diesel from Rs.10.69 per litre to Rs. 8.69 per litre.
2 Rs excise on petrol and diesel is being reduced & this is being converted into cess, that is the only change we have made, practically there is no impact on the final price of petrol & diesel. To the consumers, there is no change: Hasmukh Adhia, Finance Secretary pic.twitter.com/U2HiUsd9pJ
— ANI (@ANI) February 1, 2018
ANI tweeted that “2 Rs excise on petrol and diesel is being reduced & this is being converted into cess, that is the only change we have made, practically there is no impact on the final price of petrol & diesel. To the consumers, there is no change: Hasmukh Adhia, Finance Secretary”
The Minister also abolished 5 percent road and infrastructure cess on ethanol-blended petrol up to 10 percent and bio-diesel up to 20 percent.
