The prices of compressed natural gas or CNG has been hike once again by the Mahanagar Gas Limited (MGL) by Rs 5 per kg. The oil company has also increased the price of domestic piped natural gas by Rs 4.50 per scm in Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). With the latest price revision, CNG rates have increased to Rs 72.00, while PNG is now retailing at Rs 45.50 in the area. This has come within a week of a steep increase in the retail price of CNG and PNG.
Before the latest price hike, CNG was being sold at Rs 67 per kg while PNG was priced at at Rs 41.50 per scm by MGL since April 6. The revised prices have come into effect from April 12, Tuesday midnight and the company has cited a massive rise in input prices behind its move. MGL had on March 31 lowered the retail prices of CNG by Rs 6/kg and for PNG by Rs 3.50 after the state government had slashed VAT on these fuels to 3 per cent from 13.5 per cent effective April 1.
But that announcement came on the same day when the Centre jacked-up producers’ price by a whopping 110 per cent for the next six months beginning April 1 for domestically produced natural gas citing a spike in global energy rates.
The steep rise in the CNG prices, which has risen by Rs 12/kg in the past one week, will deeply impact public transport in and around the Mumbai area, including buses, auto-rickshaws, taxis and others, which mostly depend on this green fuel to run. On the other hand, the increase in price of PNG will severely impact around 17 lakh household across MMR, who have to pay Rs 9.50 more per unit as compared to last week.
“The selling price of domestically produced natural gas has been increased by 110 per cent by the Centre. The cost of regasified LNG, which is being blended to offset shortfall in availability of domestic gas for CNG, is at historically high levels. So we are constrained to increase prices,” MGL said in a statement.
The revised price of CNG is cheaper by 59 per cent over petrol 31 per cent cheaper than diesel, while domestic PNG is around 19 per cent cheaper than LPG, it added.
In the national capital, Delhi, on the other hand, hundreds of auto-rickshaw, taxi and cab drivers staged a protest at the secretariat on Monday demanding subsidy on CNG. The protesters threatened to go on an indefinite strike from April 18 if their demand was not met. CNG in the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi now costs Rs 69.11 per kg, with the price rising by Rs 13.1 per kg in a month.
The prices of petrol and diesel have remained historically high across India, but have been kept stable over the past week amid a drop in crude oil prices. CNG and PNG prices, however, have continued to be on the rise.
(With agency inputs)
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