With Govt abdicating its duties, SK oil agents, dealers fix price at their whims
Public pay through their nose, subsidy meaningless
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, May 15 2012: Notwithstanding the fact that SK Oil is one of the most basic commodities under the Public Distribution System, the State Government has literally left it to dealers and agents to fix the price of kerosene according to their own whims.

An official source informed that Value Added Tax (VAT) of five per cent levied on SK Oil was completely waived off by an order issued by the Finance Commissioner on August 12 last year.

Since then, the price of SK Oil has never been revised or fixed anew.

Nevertheless, the notification quoted the revised rates of SK Oil sent by the IOC's Guwahati based North East Integrated State Office to IOC's Divisional Office, Imphal.

As per the rates revised by the IOC, price of SK Oil varied from one dealer to another in accordance to their distance from Chingmeirong depot.

Excluding two dealers of Jiribam, altogether 35 dealers have been taking SK oil from the Imphal depot.

Based on the prices at which SK Oil is made available to dealers by the IOC, the dealers should distribute kerosene to the public at prices calculated after adding Rs 275 for dealers' commission and Rs 83 for retailers' commission per kilolitre.

Jerrycans in queue for kerosene given at subsidised rate

For all dealers located at Singjamei, Moirangkhom, Lamphel, Wangoi and North AOC, the price of SK Oil as fixed by the IOC is Rs 12889.44 per Kl.

For dealers located at Mantripukhri in Imphal East district, the price is Rs 13889.44, for Lamlai it is Rs 13846.55 and Rs 13914.44 for Porompat.

Those dealers who have been taking kerosene from the depot at Rs 13889.44 per Kl should sell the same commodity at Rs 14164.44 per Kl to either retailers or agents after adding dealers' commission of Rs 275 .

Again the retailers or agents should make SK Oil available to the public at Rs 14247.44 per Kl after adding retailers' commission of Rs 83.At this rate, people should get SK Oil at Rs 14.25 per litre.

Contrary to these specified rates, retailers or agents have been selling SK oil at Rs 25 per litre.

In both open and black markets, the price of the same commodity is as high as Rs 80 per litre.

One primary factor for the inflated price of SK Oil and blatant manipulation of price structure is the failure on the part of the State Government to issue an order for enforcing the revised price structure given by the IOC.

This is only giving ample opportunity to dealers and retailers to charge any amount of money for one litre of kerosene.

Notably, the Government of India has been giving the State a been giving the State a subsidy of Rs 29970 per Kl on SK Oil.

Annually, the Government of India has been giving several crores as subsidy on kerosene for the people of Manipur.

But the huge benefits that the people of Manipur should enjoy from this generous subsidy hardly reach them.

Rather, people have been purchasing this essential commodity at exorbitant prices, added the source.