Petrol price hike pinches city more than Mumbai

Blame it on the civic body's 'High' 2 per cent octroi, as fuel dealers say it adds to the burden of other taxes to make petrol costlier by Rs 1 per litre in the city

Petrol price hike pinches city more than Mumbai

Blame it on the civic body's 'High' 2 per cent octroi, as fuel dealers say it adds to the burden of other taxes to make petrol costlier by Rs 1 per litre in the city

Costlier ride: In a city where public transport is nothing to write home
about, the higher price of petrol rankles. Representation pic

So why do Punekars have to shell out more? As the petrol comes from Mumbai refineries through pipelines, pump owners have to pay extra for transportation. Dealers also have to pay the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) octroi tax, besides the value added tax (VAT) paid on base petrol. While octroi tax is 2 per cent for the PMC, the PCMC charges 3 per cent. "We have to pay 2 per cent octroi tax, because of which petrol is slightly
higher in the city," said Ali Daruwalla, spokesperson, Pune Petrol Dealers Association. "The corporation has to think about it. If it does not want to overburden the commuters, it has to do away with octroi."

Tanveer Daruwalla of the Daruwalla Petrol Pump said, "We not only pay higher octroi tax compared to Mumbai, but also excise duty which results in the higher prices." PMC officials maintain that they have done their best not to overburden the vehicle users or dealers.

"We haven't increased the octroi tax in the last five years, but the government has increased the price of petrol on more than 15 occasions.u00a0 In fact, the PCMC charges more octroi tax than the PMC," said Hemant Nikam, Octroi Chief Officer. Many people who have moved base from Mumbai to Pune said their cost of living had increased because of the higher price of petrol in the city. "I had moved to Pune because of the short distances one has to travel here and the lower real estate prices.

But since the time I shifted, my cost of living has increased. Cost of transportation, food and entertainment is much higher here. I used to travel by local trains in Mumbai, but here I have my bike. And now with the rise in higher petrol prices, my budget has gone for a toss," said Shovik Bhattacharya, who works with a private telecom firm.

Pratik Patnaik, who shifted from Mumbai some four years ago and works with an IT firm, said that apart from buying a house here, he ends up paying more. "I do not have a two-wheeler and therefore end up travelling in a four-wheeler. I spend almost half of my salary on petrol," said Patnaik.

Voices
I will probably take to walking more rather than taking out my bike every now and then. I will also try to run all errands in one trip of I take my bike
--u00a0Arati Pawar (23), CA
u00a0
May be, we need to work on suitable alternatives as prices will keep increasing in the near future with no government subsidy to help. Use of public transport seems like a good idea, with cycling being a healthy option
-- Rohan Jadhav (23), Student
u00a0
Carpools are the way to go, besides public transport. Also, walking shorter distances will make people healthier
-- Aletta D'Cruz (21), Student

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