CHANDIGARH: The Petrol Pump Dealers Association in Punjab on Saturday lamented the negative impact of higher prices of petrol and diesel on their business and the rising burden on the common man.
In a statement here, its President Paramjit Singh Doaba said Mohali is the most expensive in both petrol and diesel compared to cities in neighbouring states.
The reason, he said, is the higher state taxes (VAT and cess) in Punjab on both products.
In Chandigarh, the petrol price is Rs 87.71 a litre, while in neighbouring Mohali in Punjab it is Rs 93.01, a high by Rs 5.30. So is diesel that is Rs 2.85 higher per litre in Mohali compared to Chandigarh where it is Rs 81.15.
In Delhi, petrol is Rs 91.21 while diesel costs Rs 81.51 per litre.
He said a higher Value Added Tax (VAT) has stifled growth of both petrol and diesel. Since 2000, state's share in the petrol and diesel sales in northern India has progressively decline owing to the increase in VAT.
The association since 2017 has been seeking parity in VAT with the neighbouring states and Chandigarh.
That Haryana and Chandigarh have been gaining at the expense of Punjab by reducing VAT on both the products since 2000. Likewise, the growth in consumption of petrol and diesel In Himachal Pradesh has increased VAT collections, he said.
The association asked state Finance Minister Manpreet Badal to announce reduction in VAT on petrol and diesel in his Budget speech on March 8.