Hardeep Singh Puri on How India Kept Fuel Flowing Amid Global Crisis | Exclusive

Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Hardeep Singh Puri, said that describing the current situation in the West Asia due to conflict in the Gulf region as "tough times" would be an understatement, but the country managed the situation and didn’t have a shortage of fuel and gas.In an exclusive conversation with Times Now Group — Times Now and Times Now Navbharat — Editor-in-Chief Navika Kumar, when asked that at a time when the government is revising the prices of fuel and LPG, how does he view the moment with the escalation of the situation in West Asia and where we are headed, the Union Minister said that the hostilities which began on February 28 and we are already on June 8, there are two aspects — one is the physical supply management

aspect, ensuring that our large population — where consumption of energy is three-times the global average and during this period when it has gone up — is to ensure availability.Speaking further, the Union Minister said that with the Strait of Hormuz closed — from where 90 per cent of our fuel and 60 per cent of LPG — was coming, there was a concern, but the government diversified, opened up other routes, and ensured that they had no shortage, adding that the government had ensured the availability.Speaking about increased fuel and gas prices, Hardeep Puri Singh said that the last time the government increased the prices was in February 2022. At that stage, the government increased prices on the stand, but what happened in those periods. "There were two global events, including the one in February 2022, and then now on February 28, 2026, the prices have come down. How did they come down because on three occasions, the Prime Minister in November 2021, May 2022, and recently, he brought the excise duty down — what did he bring down — last reduction Rs 1 lakh crore through excise duty reduction of Rs 10 on petrol and Rs 10 on diesel, and each time when we have brought the central excise down, in the past months, this time not so much, we requested the BJP-ruled states to reduce their VAT, and the states did it," Union Minister Puri said. The Modi government last reduced the central excise duty on petrol and diesel on March 27, 2026 when it slashed the excise duty by Rs 10 per litre on both petrol and diesel. This reduced the Special Additional Excise Duty (SAED) on petrol down from Rs 13 to Rs 3 per litre, and eliminated the duty on diesel entirely, bringing it down from Rs 10 to zero. The impact was that the retail pump prices for consumers did not change as the government implemented the tax cut to shield public-sector Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs).

A Look at Recent Excise Duty Cuts By Modi Govt:

• November 3, 2021: Govt slashed duties by Rs 5 per litre on petrol and Rs 10 per litre on diesel.
• May 22, 2022: Excise duty reduced on petrol by Rs 8 per litre and on diesel by Rs 6 per litre.
• April 8, 2025: Govt slashed petrol excise duty by Rs 6 per litre.

Continuing further, Puri said, "Today, after 90 plus days of the West Asia conflict continuing, Rs 1 lakh crore that is Rs 10 on petrol and diesel via excise duty cut, the government has taken the hit and the rest Rs 7.60 price has been increased, so a fair comment can be - India is the only country in the world, apart from Japan, which has the lowest increase, from 4-5 to 7 per cent, compared to US, where it has been increased by 40-50 per cent, Europe 25 per cent, the price of the LPG in the neighbourhood, ours is around Rs 942 while everywhere else it’s Rs 1100, Rs 1500 and so on."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJtKbNoHtkU

Hardeep Singh Puri on Rahul Gandhi's 'Economic Crisis' Statement

When asked on Rahul Gandhi’s recent allegations that the government is taking the country for a ride, they don’t have prices under control, there is an economic crisis that is going on and he’s been getting messages from the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and he’s also hearing that an emergency may be imposed, Hardeep Puri Singh said that all these statements need a certain level of scrutiny. "These are very serious statements of the LoP, as he says that he has been getting calls that the economy is dead… I just saw the figures of the last quarter and we have ended the quarter with 7.7 per cent growth, so does this look like a dead economy."Mentioning about economic activity in the country, Hardeep Puri Singh said that during Congress times, they (Congress era) got 74 airports but we have got 160 airports. They built 200 kms of metro train and in our time, we have taken it to over 1,000 kms."The Union Minister said that Rahul Gandhi should seriously introspect.

Matter of Time When It Will Collapse, Hardeep Singh Puri on INDIA Bloc

On the INDIA bloc meeting, Hardeep Singh Puri said that it’s a grouping of people which has contradictions and it is feeling the weight of contradictions. "It’s a matter of timing by when it will collapse. Now in a democracy, there is full play of new forms, associations, new groups to come up, some go to Jantar Mantar, some try to come in Parliament. I think what we should be doing is to encourage opposition because any government wants to have a serious debate in the House."Rahul Gandhi has made a lot of statements, and I think each one of them must have been based on some advice given by his advisers. But the opposition today needs to reinvent itself, the Union Minister concluded.