New Delhi, April 8 -- The government raised excise duty on petrol and diesel to mop up part of the windfall gains accruing to fuel retailers because of a steep fall in international oil prices following the US' move to levy retaliatory tariffs on exports from around 60 countries. The move is expected to fetch the government between Rs.32,000 crore and Rs.34,000 crore a year, and since the duty is a so-called special additional excise duty (SAED), it will not go into the divisible pool and will not be shared with the states.
The government also increased prices of cooking gas by Rs.50 per cylinder from Tuesday, although this cost will be borne by consumers.
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