Rajasthan to reduce VAT on petrol by ₹4/litre and diesel by ₹5/litre

Jaipur: The Rajasthan government on Tuesday decided to slash VAT on fuels, making petrol cheaper by ₹4 per litre and diesel by ₹5 per litre.

The new prices came in effect from Tuesday midnight.

“In the cabinet meeting today, it was unanimously decided to reduce the rate of VAT on petrol/diesel. After this, the rates will be reduced by ₹4 per litre in petrol and ₹5 per litre in diesel from 12 o’clock tonight,” state chief minister Ashok Gehlot tweeted.

Currently, the price of petrol in Rajasthan is ₹111.10 and diesel ₹95.71 per litre.

Despite an estimated loss of ₹1,800 crore in the state’s revenue due to the reduction in excise duty on petrol and diesel by the GoI, the cabinet has taken this decision keeping public interest paramount, the chief minister’s office said in a release.

On November 3, the central government slashed excise duty on petrol and diesel by ₹5 and ₹10 per litre, respectively. Following this, BJP-ruled states, Punjab and Odisha reduced VAT on fuel to further reduce the prices. Some Congress-ruled states, including Rajasthan, however, had not cut VAT and had demanded further reduction in central excise duty.