From May 1, petrol and diesel prices will change every day in sync with international rates, much like it happens in most advanced markets. State-owned fuel retailers Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL), which own more than 95% of nearly the 58,000 petrol pumps in the country, will launch a pilot for daily price revision in five select cities from May 1 and gradually extend it across the country.
“Ultimately, we will be driving towards market linked rates on a daily basis at all pumps across the country,” IOC chairman B Ashok told . A pilot for daily revision of petrol and diesel price will be first implemented in Puducherry, Vizag in Andhra Pradesh, Udaipur in Rajasthan, Jamshedpur in Jharkhand and Chandigarh, he said.
Petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan told that “Everyday change in pricing of petroleum products is a recommendation of experts. The government has nothing to do with it.”
State fuel retailers currently revise rates on the 1st and 16th of every month based on average international price of fuel in the preceding fortnight and currency exchange rate. Instead of using fortnightly average, pump rates will reflect daily movement in international oil prices and rupee- US dollar fluctuations.
