By IANS,
Shimla : Providing relief to the people of Himachal Pradesh from the recent hike in prices of petroleum products, the state government Monday reduced the value added tax (VAT) on diesel and waived it on kerosene.
The state cabinet meeting presided over by Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal decided to slash the VAT on diesel to 9.70 percent from 14 percent, and waive it completely on kerosene.
At present, with 14 percent VAT the price of diesel in the state is Rs.41.99.
Government officials said the price of diesel would be reduced by around Rs.1.50, almost half of the recent hike.
The central government last week increased the price of diesel by Rs.3 per litre, of kerosene by Rs.2 a litre, and of LPG by Rs.50 per cylinder of 14.4 kg. The central government asked the state governments to reduce state-level taxes to lower the burden on the common man.