Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Indians Look for Ways to Ease Pain as Fuel Prices Jump

The steep rise in fuel prices in India has hit hard people, especially from the middle class.

Rising country’s crude oil bills, depreciation of the rupee, persisting trade war tensions in the global market, and other factors have been rapidly pushing the fuel prices to move up in the country for the past two to three months.


Diesel prices were seen ruling at Rs 73.87 while petrol prices were seen at Rs 82.22, a litre in India’s capital city New Delhi on Thursday (20).

Petrol prices in New Delhi have moved up by 15.4 per cent so far this year from Rs 69.97 as on January 1, 2018, whereas diesel prices moved rapidly by 22 per cent since January 1 when it was trading at Rs 59.70 a litre.

Many Indians are switching off air conditioners in cars and going to gas pumps across state borders in a bid to save money, as petrol prices across the country hover at record-high levels.

Protests against high petrol and diesel prices paralysed many parts of India earlier this month, shutting businesses, government offices and schools. The government blamed the high pump prices on the rising cost of crude oil and a weakening rupee.

Kalyan Chakrabarty, a 39-year old cab driver in the eastern state of Odisha, said he switches off his car’s air conditioner intermittently while travelling so that he can save ‘one or two litres’ of fuel.

For 42-year-old Brij Nandan from Delhi, abandoning his scooter for a bicycle was the only option.

"My fuel bills kept rising steadily and once it crossed Rs 2,000 (£20.94) a month, I could no longer afford to ride a scooter," said Nandan, who supports a family of five.

Fuel prices are not uniform across the country due to various state taxes.

Anirudha Bora, a truck owner from the northeastern Indian city of Guwahati, says he crosses the state border to save money.

"I drive across the road to Meghalaya state. I save about Rs 400 (£4.19) when I fill 100 litres of fuel," Bora told Reuters.

States such as Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan and West Bengal this week cut taxes on fuel to reduce the burden, but the federal government has so far not done so.

Taxes on petrol and diesel, which account for more than a third of retail fuel prices, are one of the biggest sources of income for state and central governments.

Reuters

More For You

Sri Lanka seeks to negotiate with Adani over renewable energy plants

Gautam Adani

Sri Lanka seeks to negotiate with Adani over renewable energy plants

SRI LANKA’S government started talks with India’s Adani Group to lower the cost of power from two wind power projects the group will build in the island nation’s northern province, the cabinet spokesman said last Tuesday (28).

Sri Lanka has been reviewing the group’s local projects after US authorities in November accused billionaire founder Gautam Adani and other executives of being part of a scheme to pay bribes to secure Indian power supply contracts. Adani has denied the allegations.

Keep ReadingShow less
Bank-of-England-Getty

The BoE also revised its economic growth forecast for 2025, reducing it by half. (Photo credit: Getty Images)

Bank of England cuts rates, lowers growth outlook

THE BANK OF ENGLAND (BoE) has cut interest rates by 0.25 percentage points to 4.5 per cent, with some policymakers supporting a bigger reduction to counter economic slowdown. However, the central bank signalled a cautious approach to future cuts, citing inflation concerns and global uncertainty.

The BoE also revised its economic growth forecast for 2025, reducing it by half. Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who has been advocating for faster economic growth, faces a challenge as inflation is now projected to be nearly double the 2 per cent target this year.

Keep ReadingShow less
Indian billionaires and tech titans shake up English cricket with major investments in The Hundred

The Oval Invincibles, now co-owned by Mukesh Ambani, are two-time defending champions in the men’s 100-ball competition

Indian billionaires and tech titans shake up English cricket with major investments in The Hundred

INDIAN billionaires and Indian American tech tycoons are among new owners of franchises in the Hundred cricket league.

Mukesh Ambani, Nikesh Arora and Sanjiv Goenka have in recent days invested in English cricket by acquiring a minority share in some of the Hundred teams.

Keep ReadingShow less
Bank-of-England-Getty
A general view of the Bank of England on December 19, 2024 in London. (Photo credit: Getty Images)

Bank of England set to reduce interest rate amid weak growth

THE BANK OF ENGLAND is expected to cut its key interest rate on Thursday as it seeks to support weak economic growth, even though inflation remains above target.

Analysts predict the central bank will reduce borrowing costs by a quarter point to 4.50 per cent at its first rate meeting of the year.

Keep ReadingShow less
OYO to boost UK presence with £50m investment

OYO operates more than 200 budget hotels across 65 UK cities

OYO to boost UK presence with £50m investment

OYO, a hospitality technology company, aims to invest £50 million in the UK over three years to expand its premium hotel portfolio, supporting 1,000 jobs in the hospitality sector.

The company is upgrading its UK portfolio by acquiring premium inventory and securing longterm leasehold and management contracts. OYO is in advanced talks with large hotel chains and real estate firms for asset management deals, the company said in a statement released to Indian media.

Keep ReadingShow less