Friday, May 20 2005 17:06 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: The CPM (Communist Party of India-Marxist) today (May 20, 2005) said that the UPA (United Progressive Alliance) Government should not consider any price hike in petroleum products at the present juncture.

Denying reports in a section of media that Left parties were open to revision of diesel and petrol prices, the Central Committee Office of CPM said the reported price hike in petrol and diesel was avoidable.

CPM, extending outside support to the UPA, said the Left leaders have suggested various options to neutralise the impact of surging global oil prices at their meeting with Finance Minister P Chidambaram and Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar on May 16.

These options include cancelling of proposed cess of 50 paise per litre for highways, change in excise duty so that it does not lead to retail price hike and doing away with import parity in product price.

The leaders also talked of setting up a price stabilisation fund to meet the fluctuation of global crude price with the cess collected on indigenous crude amounting to Rs 5,400 crore per annum and review of duty drawback to exporters of petroleum products by private refineries.

According to reports in a section of the press, the Petroleum Ministry had said in its briefing note to the Prime Minister's Office that the Left leaders have understood the need for a revision but were open to raising only diesel and petrol prices in parity with international crude oil.