Government earned Rs 8 lakh crore in the past three years through taxes levied on fuels
New Delhi:
The government has earned about Rs 8 lakh crore in taxes levied on petrol and diesel for the past three fiscal years, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told parliament on Tuesday.
Out of the total amount, more than Rs 3.71 lakh crore was collected in 2020-21 itself, she inquired in a written response to an inquiry in Rajya Sabha.
The excise duty on petrol increased from Rs 19.48 per liter on October 5, 2018 to Rs 27.90 per liter on November 4, 2021. The excise duty on diesel increased from Rs 15.33 to Rs 21.80 during the same period, Ms Sitharaman said while detailing tax increases on fuel prices.
Within this period, the excise duty on petrol decreased from Rs 19.48 per liter from October 5, 2018 to Rs 17.98 as at July 6, 2019; while the excise duty on diesel has been reduced from Rs 15.33 to Rs 13.83 during the same reference period.
The excise duties on petrol and diesel rose to Rs 32.98 and Rs 31.83 respectively until February 2, 2021, before falling a bit and then falling further to Rs 27.90 per liter (petrol) and Rs 21.80 (diesel) as on November 4, 2021.
“The central excise duties, including cessions collected on petrol and diesel, over the past three years are: Rs 2,10,282 crore in 2018-19; Rs 2,19,750 crore in 2019-20 and Rs 3,71,908 crore in 2020- 21,” said the finance minister.
Just before Diwali this year on November 4, the government cut the excise tax on petrol and diesel by Rs 5 and Rs 10 per liter respectively.
This was followed by several states announcing a reduction in the value added tax (VAT) on gasoline and diesel.
