Govt should devise ways by which pricing of petroleum products can be streamlined

I always used to say it is easy to bridge the gap by going on increasing administered prices and taking away subsidies at the same time. Efficiency level is not at work in achieving targets like this.

The government must understand (it knows this, but keeps mum) that for ages we have been following the administered pricing system for petrol, diesel, cooking gas, kerosene and the like. That was the time when there was no regard for play of market forces at the international level. Perhaps during those times, it was advantageous for the government to increase prices and add various levies on such prices.

Lately, the in-thing has been allowing market forces to play and decontrol the sector. The consumers do not have an inkling of the management or mismanagement of petroleum companies which say they are always in the red because of the increasing prices of petroleum products at the international level.

And the government has at once decontrolled the pricing system and allowed the companies to take decisions.

But the government has not thought it fit to seriously study the situation and impress upon the consumers about what it did to the additional levies.
When you are decontrolling the pricing, you have to start it on a clean plate. At least you have to go in for a restructuring. That has not been done.

For a long time now, the easiest way to fetch money for the government has been to add some new levy to the petroleum products. No one knows exactly how much money is levied in addition to the basic prices.

And the government knows it for a fact that the common people in their plenty would absorb the hike in price. They have no other go.

The government should devise ways by which the additional levies can be halved.