In the next quarter, the country will also start gearing up for various Assembly elections, which analysts expect, could put the government as well as the OMCs under pressure. The Opposition parties have already called for a nation-wide strike on Monday to protest the rise in fuel prices.
“Given the recent uproar over the fuel price hike, the government may come under pressure to cut down on duties in the next few months, and, it won’t be a surprise, if the OMCs are expected to absorb some of it,” said an analyst with a domestic brokerage firm.
Diesel and petrol prices in the country have increased sharply in line with the rise in global prices. Both fuels have touched new highs, most of the rise seen in the last six months. On Friday, diesel cost Rs 72.1 per litre in Delhi, 24 per cent higher from a year back and petrol was Rs 80 per litre, 15 per cent higher from a year back. In Delhi, for instance, the central and state tax together add Rs 25.79 a litre to retail price for diesel and Rs 36.31 for petrol.
