State-run Indian Oil Corp, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum are losing Rs 235 crore

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per day on selling diesel, LPG and kerosene below cost, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas R P N Singh said today.

"The oil marketing companies (OMCs) are currently incurring under-recoveries of Rs 4.97 per litre on diesel, Rs 23.74 per litre on PDS kerosene and Rs 247 per cylinder of domestic LPG," Singh said in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha here.

The current sales price of these retail fuels in Delhi, Rs 41.29 per litre of diesel, Rs 395.35 per 14.2-kg LPG cylinder and Rs 14.83 per litre of kerosene, is way below the imported cost of the fuel.

"At these rates, the OMCs are incurring a daily under- recovery (revenue loss) of Rs 235 crore," he said.

"In order to insulate the common man from the impact of the rise in oil prices in the international market and in view of the domestic inflationary conditions, the government continues to modulate the retail selling price (RSPs) of diesel, PDS kerosene and domestic LPG and the RSPs of these petroleum products are below the required market price," he added.

Petrol prices have risen by 21% since they were freed from government control in June last year. The price of petrol in Delhi was Rs 51.43 a litre when the government decontrolled the fuel on June 26, 2010. Today, it costs Rs 63.70 a litre.

Singh said the average price of the basket of crude oil India buys was $69.76 per barrel in 2009-10, which increased to $85.09 a litre in 2010-11.

"During 2011-12, the average price of the Indian basket of crude oil was $112.11 per barrel."

Over 40% of the Rs 63.70 a litre price of petrol in Delhi is made up of taxes -- a Rs 0.69 customs duty, Rs 14.78 in excise and Rs 10.62 in state VAT -- he said.

However, in the case of diesel, the total taxes account for only Rs 7.64 out the retail price of Rs 33.65 in Delhi. The taxes include Rs 0.74 in customs duty, Rs 2.06 in excise duty and Rs 4.84 state VAT.