MP Levies Highest Tax On Petrol, Rajasthan On Diesel, Says Puri

While central govt levies a fixed excise duty of Rs 32.90 a litre on petrol & Rs 31.80 a litre on diesel, states charge an ad valorem rate of VAT

NEW DELHI: Madhya Pradesh levies the highest sales tax or VAT on petrol in the country, while Rajasthan has the highest tax on diesel, Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri told the Lok Sabha on Monday.

Heavily taxed petrol and diesel rates have shot to their highest prices this month. Taxes, both central and state, make up for 55 per cent of the retail price of petrol and 50 per cent of diesel rates.

While the central government levies a fixed excise duty of Rs 32.90 a litre on petrol and Rs 31.80 a litre on diesel, states charge an ad valorem rate of VAT that essentially results in per litre tax going up when prices rise, and falling when rates come down.

“The excise duty/cess collected (by the Central government) from petrol is Rs 1,01,598 crore and from diesel is Rs 2,33,296 crore during the financial year 2020-21 (that ended on March 31, 2021),” Puri said in a written reply to a question. State governments, he said, levy VAT on the total amount of base price and central taxes of petrol and diesel.

The lowest VAT on petrol and diesel is in Andaman and Nicobar Islands at Rs 4.82 per litre and Rs 4.74 a litre, respectively.

Madhya Pradesh levies Rs 31.55 a litre VAT on petrol - the highest in the country, while Rajasthan charges Rs 21.82 a litre on diesel, according to Puri’s reply.