Fuel prices to go up in Punjab as VAT on petrol, diesel hiked

Fuel prices are set to go up in Punjab with the state Cabinet on Thursday deciding to increase value-added tax (VAT) on petrol and diesel by 61 paise a litre and 92 paise per litre, respectively. A decision in this regard was taken by the council of ministers in a meeting chaired by Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann here. At present, the retail price of petrol in Mohali stands at Rs 97.01 per litre and diesel is priced at Rs 87.21. Already, the fuel is more expensive in Punjab than in Chandigarh. In the Union Territory of Chandigarh, prices of petrol and diesel are Rs 94.24 and Rs 82.40 per litre, respectively. Fuel pump owners strongly condemned the decision of the AAP-led government, saying it would hit their business hard.