Chennai

The Tamil Nadu BJP on Saturday claimed India has kept fuel prices under control despite effecting a marginal increase by Rs 3 per litre, while the global average petrol price today stood at Rs 145 per litre.

Petrol and diesel, which had been sold at the same price for the past four years in the country have increased by Rs 3 per litre from Thursday morning.

The US-Iran war that intensified caused a massive disruption in global oil supplies. It was noteworthy that India imported 85 per cent of its crude oil requirement, BJP chief spokesperson Narayanan Thirupathy said.

Following the "closure" of the Strait of Hormuz and a blockade imposed due to heightened conflict and retaliation, oil tanker traffic dropped by 90-95 per cent (from 129-140 vessels to fewer than 7), he said in a post on 'X'.

Oil exports from Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Iraq, and Iran have largely come to a halt.

Explaining in detail about the impact of the conflict, he said American-Israeli attacks on Iran resulted in severe damage to oil fields, refineries, and pipelines, leading to the suspension of 10 million barrels per day of oil production in April and May.

"So far, this has resulted in a cumulative loss of around 1 billion barrels. In addition, the lack of exports has caused storage tanks to overflow, forcing a compulsory reduction in production. Iran has further cut its output due to US sanctions," he claimed.

Even if the war ends, it is estimated that repairing the damaged infrastructure and restoring production to normal levels could take at least seven months. Overall, global oil production is expected to decline by 0.4 per cent, Thirupathy said.

Since the war began, India has been sourcing oil from Russia (45-50 per cent), Saudi Arabia, Iran, Venezuela, Brazil, Angola, the US, Canada, and others. Due to higher prices, reduced production, increased transportation costs, and delays, Indian oil companies are currently incurring losses of Rs 1,000 crore per day and Rs 30,000 crore per month.

In the past few months alone, losses have reached up to Rs 2 lakh crore. In the meantime, the central government has absorbed the burden on the public by removing Rs 10 per litre of excise duty. This has resulted in a monthly revenue loss of Rs 14,000 crore for the Central Government.

"While petrol prices in India have risen by 3 per cent today, they have increased by 44 per cent in the United States and 55 per cent in Pakistan. Today in Chennai, petrol is priced at Rs 103–104 per litre. In comparison, it is being sold at around Rs 103 in the US, Rs 95–105 in China, Rs 200–210 in Pakistan, Rs 240 in Germany, and Rs 370–400 in Hong Kong," he said.

This clearly showed how well India has kept fuel prices under control. The global average petrol price today stood at Rs 145 per litre.

Additionally, countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Myanmar are facing severe shortages of petrol and diesel. Nations such as the UK and China are also heading towards acute shortages of fuel for transportation and agriculture.

"Thanks to the various precautionary measures taken by India, the country has experienced only a limited price increase, with no shortages, demonstrating excellent governance and sparing the public from hardship," the BJP leader said.

India maintained 60 days of crude oil reserves, natural gas reserves, and 45 days of LPG reserves, thereby mitigating risks to the people. Oil companies have absorbed losses to stabilise retail supply, ensuring uninterrupted public distribution. Domestic refining capacity has also been strengthened, increasing LPG production by 25-30 per cent, he claimed.

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At a time when the US-Iran war is causing a severe global economic crisis, the Indian government’s effective handling of the situation - protecting citizens from major hardships and safeguarding the economy - was highly commendable, Thirupathy said.

"If the war continues, there may be further challenges ahead. With the people’s cooperation, the Bharatiya Janata Party government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi will overcome all obstacles and ensure a strong economy," he added.