Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways and Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises, spoke to Anisha Dutta on the centre’s proposal to hike fuel prices and provide huge tax rebates on electric vehicles in the union budget 2019-20. Edited excerpts:
Don’t you think the move to increase Special Additional Excise duty and Road and Infrastructure Cess each by one rupee a litre on petrol and diesel will pinch the middle class?
No it won’t. Actually the prices in the international markets for oil have reduced and this additional Rs 2 will get accommodated in that. The excise duty and the increase in the road cess will keep current rates the same; only the price which was supposed to reduce won’t. It will be compensated by (lower) international prices and this money will contribute in a big way towards infrastructure development and aid state governments in their budget.
