A report gives the projected prices of petrol and diesel if brought under the ambit of the Goods and Services Tax (GST). It gives the projected prices in different cities with different GST rates ranging from 12% to 28%. According to the report, petrol will be cheaper by at least ₹20/litre in metro cities, even with the highest tax rate.
The Goods and Services tax (GST) was introduced in India from July 1, 2017 which subsumed all indirect taxes levied by the central and state governments. However, petroleum products such as petrol, diesel, jet fuel and natural gas were kept out of the purview of GST in order to preserve the revenue acquired by the states.
The only change that had happened was daily revision of petrol and diesel prices instead of every fortnight. As per government, this was done to immediately passes on the benefit of any reduction in international oil prices to consumers and avoids sharp spikes by spreading them in small doses. But there has been a spike of Rs 7.3 per litre in petrol and diesel price since GST rollout in July.