Fuel prices on August 18: Check rates in Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad
According to the Indian Oil Corporation, petrol prices in Chennai stood at Rs 99.47 per litre and diesel at Rs 94.20 per litre.
Petrol prices remained stable for the 31st consecutive day, while diesel prices fell by almost 19 to 21 paise in every South Indian city for the first time on August 18, after holding steady for 32 days in a row. Petrol prices had touched new high levels across the country on July 17 after rising by 30 paise. On August 13, the Tamil Nadu government announced a slash on the petrol cess by Rs 3, during the state level budget session.
According to the Indian Oil Corporation, petrol prices in Chennai stood at Rs 99.47 per litre and diesel at Rs 94.20 per litre. Petrol prices in Hyderabad was at Rs 105.83, while diesel prices were at Rs 97.74.
Petrol prices remain unchanged in Bangalore, where a litre of petrol was at Rs 105.25, while diesel fell by 21 paise to Rs 95.05.
In Vijayawada, a litre of petrol and diesel will cost Rs 107.64 and Rs 99.06 respectively. Currently, fuel prices are highest in Vijayawada among all South Indian cities.
The revision on 17 July had added up to Rs 11.15 for petrol since May. The hike on July 17 was the 41st price hike in petrol since May 4. The prices were hiked 16 times in June and 9 times in July.
Fuel prices in South Indian cities
| City | Petrol (Rs/Litre | Diesel (Rs/Litre) |
| Chennai | 99.47 | 94.20 |
| Bangalore | 105.25 | 95.05 |
| Hyderabad | 105.83 | 97.74 |
| Vijayawada | 107.64 | 99.06 |
| Trivandrum | 103.82 | 96.26 |
| Pondicherry | 101.95 | 93.31 |
| Visakhapatnam | 106.80 | 98.23 |
Tamil Nadu government to bear the loss of the tax revenue
Finance Minister Palanivel Thiagarajan (PTR) announced that cess on petrol will be slashed by Rs 3 and it would help in bringing down the skyrocketing prices. Thiagarajan added that this was done as per the instructions of chief minister MK Stalin and this reduction in cess will cost the state treasury close to Rs 1,160 crore. Petrol prices have been hiked for 41 days in the current fiscal. The price per litre of petrol has breached the Rs 100 mark in all metros across the country.
Price changes due to these factors
In India, petrol and diesel prices depend on various factors like valuation of Indian Rupee(INR) against US Dollar(USD), consumption ratio of refineries and demand for fuel. The fuel prices are revised by oil marketing companies like Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum based on international crude prices and foreign exchange rates. Petrol and diesel prices get revised in India every day at 6 am.