Petrol price hike was decision of oil marketing firms: Pranab

NEW DELHI: Amid resentment over sharp hike in petrol prices, the Government today distanced itself from the decision saying the call was taken by oil marketing firms.

"So far petrol price is concerned, petrol has been deregulated. It is oil marketing companies' review," Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said when asked about Rs 3.14 per litre hike.

He was talking to the reporters after launching 'Land of Two Rivers', a book written by Nitish Sengupta here.

Yesterday the state-owned oil companies hiked petrol prices stating that depreciation of Rupee increased the cost of crude oil import. This is the second major hike in four months. In May, petrol price was increased by Rs 5 per litre.

While the UPA ally Trinamool Congress has already demanded a rollback in the hike, CPI(M) termed it as "callous" and demanded restoration of the administrative regulation of petrol pricing.

The CPI(M) said that the petrol price hike comes at a time when inflation is touching double digits and this would only have a cascading effect on price rise.

The RBI in its monetary policy today said that the petrol price hike would push WPI inflation up by 7 basis points, besides having cascading effect.

Petrol prices were freed from the government control in June last year.