Proposal to hike duty on diesel cars on card

Amid widening price difference between petrol and diesel, the Finance Ministry is looking at the possibility of raising excise duty on diesel cars, a suggestion which was mooted long back by the Oil Ministry. "Hiking excise duty on diesel cars is still on the agenda. It was not taken up during the Budget. It will take some time. It will happen," a Finance Ministry official said. To discourage consumption of subsidised diesel by personal vehicle owners, the Petroleum Ministry had suggested imposition of higher duty on purchase of diesel cars. While the Petroleum Ministry has been asking for a hike in the excise duty on diesel cars, the Heavy Industries Ministry is opposing the move. The Oil Ministry has argued that the additional amount garnered can be used to make good a part of the loss that fuel retailers incur on the sale of diesel at government-controlled rates.