While the petrol and diesel prices continued to soar to new highs after a continuous rise in fuel rates for the 12th consecutive day on Saturday, people living along the Indo-Nepal border areas led to an interesting development.
Finding a new way snubbing the hiking petrol prices, people in Uttar Pradesh have found out a new way to cope with the fuel prices. According to various articles published by local media, people along the Indo-Nepal borders have been smuggling in petrol and diesel from neighbouring Nepal where the price is cheaper by around ₹22.
Locals are reportedly crossing the border using narrow tracks, away from the main roads, to smuggle in the petrol. In the Bahraich district, people are driving their vehicles to get their tanks topped up and also some of them are carrying huge cans to smuggle the fuel as well.
It has become a difficult task for local police and SSB jawans who intensified the patrolling operation at the border. It can be noted that petrol is retailing at ₹93.50 per litre in Bihar’s Araria, it is available at ₹70.62 in Nepal. Interestingly, Nepal gets the supply of petrol from India i.e, 250 tankers of fuel are supplied daily to the neighbouring country.
The prices of petroleum products in India are at an all-time high due to several taxes being levied upon it by the Centre and the states, whereas in Nepal there is a single tax regime.
