Adding to the worries of a common man dealing with inflation, domestic Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) will cost more from today (6 July) as the price of a 14.2 kg LPG cylinder was hiked by Rs 50. This is the eighth straight increase in LPG prices by Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) since July 2021. The price of a 5 kg domestic cylinder will go up by Rs 18 per cylinder. Meanwhile, the price of a 19kg commercial cylinder has been cut down by Rs 8.5 per cylinder. After today’s price revision, domestic LPG will now cost Rs 1,053 in Delhi. In the last year, the rate of domestic LPG cylinders in the National Capital has increased from Rs 834.50 to Rs 1,003. The price of domestic gas cylinders has gone up to Rs 1,079 in Kolkata, Rs 1,052.50 in Mumbai, and Rs 1,068.50 in Chennai.
Note that LPG cylinder prices vary from state to state depending on the VAT and transportation costs of the region. It is also calculated on the basis of crude oil prices. Retailers revise LPG cylinder prices at the beginning of each month keeping in line with global crude oil prices. The rising rates of crude oil globally have prompted state-owned fuel retailers to hike LPG prices. The latest hike in domestic cooking gas prices comes months after finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had in May stated that Ujjwala scheme beneficiaries will get Rs 200 per cylinder subsidy 12 times in a year to help ease some of the burden arising from cooking gas rates rising to record levels.
The hike in domestic LPG cylinder prices comes days after commercial LPG cylinder prices were slashed by OMCs. Bringing a huge relief to commercial consumers, the OMCs announced to reduce the prices of the 19 kg commercial cylinder by nearly Rs 200. After the price cut, the 19 kg commercial cylinder became cheaper by Rs 198 per bottle. The price of a 19 kg commercial cylinder came down to Rs 2,021 as against the earlier price of Rs 2,219 in Delhi, while in Kolkata the cylinder is now priced at Rs 2,140 instead of Rs 2,322. In Mumbai, the rates came down to Rs 1,981 from Rs 2,171.50, while the price in Chennai dropped to Rs 2186 from Rs 2,373 earlier.
It is worth noting that the domestic LPG cylinder price was last increased by Rs 4 on May 19, 2022. Before that, the rate was Rs 999.50 per cylinder from May 7. On that day, the LPG cylinder had become costlier by Rs 50 as against the rate of Rs 949.50 on March 22, 2022. Further, on March 22 also, LPG cylinder prices were hiked by Rs 50. Earlier, between October 2021 and February 2022, the rates of domestic LPG cylinders stood at Rs 899.50 in Delhi. Meanwhile, contrary to the relentless cooking gas price hikes, petrol and diesel prices have remained unchanged for over a month.
