25 states, UTs so far slashed VAT on fuel, Kerala not undertaken any cut, Centre releases list

NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has said that only 25 states and Union Territories (UTs) have so far undertaken commensurate reduction of VAT (value-added tax) on petrol and diesel to give respite to the consumers. The Centre had on November 3 slashed excise duty on petrol by Rs 5 per litre and that on diesel by Rs 10 a litre to give reprieve to consumers and also urged states to commensurately cut VAT to give further relief to consumers.

It a worth mentioning here that a majority of states have announced VAT reduction cut, but some states are yet to announce a tax cut on auto fuels. The petroleum ministry has released the list of the states which are yet to reduce VAT. The states and UTs which have not undertaken any cut in VAT in petrol and diesel are Maharashtra, NCT of Delhi, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh and Rajasthan.

In Lakshdweep, the government said, UT government procures Kerala paid VAT petrol and diesel. At present, there is nil tax on petrol and diesel in the UT.

Following the cut in VAT, the price of petrol has come down most in Punjab by Rs 16.02 per litre, followed by Rs 13.43 in UT of Ladakh and Rs 13.35 in Karnataka.

Petrol is cheapest in Andaman & Nicobar at Rs 82.96 per litre, while it is Rs 92.02 per litre in Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh. Petrol is priced at Rs 117.45 per litre in Jaipur, Rajasthan, while it is Rs 115.85 in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

In the case of diesel, the price has come down most in UT of Ladakh by Rs 19.61 per litre, followed by Rs 19.49 in Karnataka and Rs 19.08 in Puducherry. Diesel is cheapest in Andaman & Nicobar at Rs 77.13 per litre, while it is Rs 79.55 per litre in Aizwal, Mizoram. Diesel is priced at Rs 108.39 per litre in Jaipur, Rajasthan, while it is Rs 107.48 in Vizag, Andhra Pradesh.

It is important to note that the retail prices of transport fuels vary from state to state depending on the incidence of local taxes such as VAT and freight charges. Most of the states that announced a cut in VAT on auto fuels are either ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) or its allies.