Sonia Gandhi to brief allies on fuel price hike

New Delhi, Mar 4 (ANI): Congress President Sonia Gandhi will talk to allies of the Congress led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government on Thursday, and explain to them the party's position on fuel price hike.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who has cautioned against instant populism, has told party MPs and UPA leaders that correcting distortions in petro good pricing was unavoidable. He also said the time to take bold decisions is "right now".

Mukherjee also referred to the window of opportunity available to the Centre and added that fuel price hike was critical to the economy.

Mukherjee had hiked customs duty on petrol and diesel to 7.5 percent from 2.5 percent while excise duty was raised by Rs 1 on non-branded, or normal, petrol and diesel to maintain growth and give the common man spending power.

Mukherjee said he had three options before him: Sit back and do nothing; Go on a borrowing spree; or Restore the duty structure. He said he opted for the third, as the government could not afford to take economically reckless decisions.

Addressing concerns raised by UPA leaders over the decision's impact on the prices of essentials, he said the government has already carried out a back-of-the-envelope calculation.

"The inflationary impact will be a mere 0.41 percent," he said, adding that an improved crop situation can absorb it.

Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led opposition has decided to halt proceedings in Parliament for the second consecutive day over the fuel price hike and other issues. (ANI)