SHILLONG: The Meghalaya government has decided to reduce the tax on petrol and diesel in the state by Rs 5 per litre from Monday midnight, Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma.
It is to be mentioned that earlier the state government has decided to reduce the price of fuel by Rs. 2 both on petrol and diesel.
In a tweet, the Meghalaya chief minister Conard Sangma wrote, "In addition to the previous rebate of Rs. 2 per litre, Government has decided to reduce the petrol price further by Rs.5.4 per litre and diesel by Rs. 5.1 per litre to offer relief to consumers of #Meghalaya with slight variations in other Districts."
The reduction of petrol which is currently standing at 30.62 per cent will now be reduced to 20 per cent or Rs. 15 per litre.
Whereas the Value-added tax (VAT) on diesel at 22.95 per cent or Rs. 12 per litre will now be reduced to 12 per cent or Rs. 9 per litre.
With the new rates in place, the price of petrol in Meghalaya will be slashed from Rs. 91.26 to Rs. 85.86 and diesel from Rs. 84.23 to Rs. 79.13.
Earlier, Meghalaya has threatened that they would go for an indefinite hunger strike if the fuel prices in the state don't come down.
Speaking to reporters, president of MJACCV Wandonbok Jyrwa said, ''As the government has been ignoring our demand, we have taken a decision to call for a new agitation starting from February 15.'' He urged the public to support their agitation by not taking out vehicles or scooty; and instead, stay away from the roads.
The state government's decision to reduce rates comes days after local taxi operators in the state capital here protested against the high taxes in petrol in the state.