Petrol inches close to Rs 81 a litre in Delhi after 5th straight price hike

Petrol Price - Adding to the woes of the common man, petrol and diesel prices were again raised on Monday, a fifth straight day of price hike in as many days by oil marketing companies. In Delhi, petrol continued its upward march in the previously uncharted territory of above the Rs 80 mark -- the price was raised by 23 paise a litre on Monday to Rs 80.73. The price of petrol in Delhi crossed the Rs 80 mark for the first time on Saturday, September 8.

Similarly, petrol prices in Mumbai were raised by 22 paise to Rs 88.12 a litre.

Another key transport fuel, diesel, also witnessed a similar hike of 22 paise in Delhi and 23 paise in Mumbai. Diesel now costs Rs 72.83 a litre and Rs 77.32 in Delhi and Mumbai, respectively.

Opposition parties like the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S), Samajwadi Party (SP), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Maharashtra Navanirman Sena (MNS), led by the Congress party, have called for a 'Bharat Bandh' to protest the rising fuel prices in the country. Left parties have announced a separate shutdown of their own.

Petrol prices at all time high; high diesel prices hurt garment industry

The President of Garment Manufacturers and Wholesale Association of Telangana, Pavan Bansal, on Monday said that the recent rise in diesel prices was affecting the garment industries all over the country. Bansal said, "Diesel rates have increased more than Rs. 10 in the last four years. This will impact the garment industry negatively raising the product of the price of the materials. It will lead to huge losses for the traders."

He added that diesel was an important commodity for the industries as it was more affordable than petrol prices.

Highlighting the importance of the fuel, Bansal further said, "Diesel is used in several industries on a daily basis, whether it is garment or manufacturing industry. Our materials come from all over India. We send garment materials to neighbouring states like Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu. We also sell the materials in local areas."

He also criticised the increase of Goods and Services Tax (GST) on raw products as it was becoming an additional burden on the traders.