Pricing of petroleum products

Photo: PRITO REZA / DRIKNEWS

Pricing of petroleum products is indeed a very crucial job for the regulatory bodies, as it affects, both directly and indirectly, all sectors of national activities. Hence, upward pricing obviously puts a dent on our expenditure budget. Except for gas, we import all the petroleum products in foreign exchange, depending on variable international prices. Because of the limitation of storage facilities and the unavailability of fund, the country also cannot build buffer stocks, at times when comparatively low prices are prevalent in the international market.
Giving subsidy, in general, is certainly a bad practice (except for special sectors like agriculture).We are already under heavy burden as our purchasing power is decreasing and the government has failed to arrest the price hike of essential commodities. Now for partial remedy, it is mandatory for the government departments concerned to make a permanent and transparent system, taking into account the variable prices of the products in the international market, variable exchange rates, cost and freight, duty and taxes, and all other incidental expenditures, to arrive at the cost price and make it public for consumers. Further, if possible, the government may also partially reduce the slab of duties and taxes on petroleum products to lessen the burden on consumers when price escalation comes under consideration. And consumers also reserve the right to enjoy the lower prices when the product price falls down in the international market.