No Proposal To Bring Petrol, Diesel, ATF, Gas Under GST: Finance Minister

Nirmala Sitharaman, the Union Finance Minister, said on Monday that there is no intention to include crude oil, aviation turbine fuel, gasoline, diesel, and natural gas in the Goods and Services Tax system. Sitharaman said in a written answer to a query in the Lok Sabha that the GST Council is required by law to recommend the date on which the goods and services tax will be imposed on these items.

On Tuesday, March 16, petrol and diesel prices across the four metros remained unchanged for the 17th day in a row. Fuel prices in the country have remained stable for more than a fortnight, despite the fact that the global oil market remains unpredictable, with price fluctuations occurring on a regular basis.

"So far, the GST Council, in which the states are also represented, has not made any recommendation for inclusion of these goods under GST," she said.

"The council may consider the issue of inclusion of these five petroleum products at a time it considers appropriate keeping in view all the relevant factors including revenue implication."

According to PTI, these five things were left out of the GST's purview when it was implemented in 2017 due to the central and state government's reliance on the petroleum sector for revenue. This suggested that the government could tax these goods and the state could impose a Value-Added Tax on them.

Currently, the national govt imposes a single rate of excise tax, while states enact differing rates of VAT. The two will be merged under the GST, bringing uniformity and resolving the issue of higher fuel prices in some states due to higher VAT.

Anurag Singh Thakur, her junior in the finance ministry, replied to a separate query by saying that excise duty on petrol was Rs 19.98 per litre a year ago and is now Rs 32.9. Similarly, the excise duty on diesel has been increased from Rs 15.83 to Rs 31.8.

He said that "petrol for vehicle" inflation has risen from 7.38 percent in January 2020 to 12.53 percent in January this year, suggesting that higher fuel costs have had an impact on general prices. "Diesel for vehicle" inflation, meanwhile, has risen from 6.44 percent in January last year to 12.79 percent this year, he said.