New Delhi, June 16 (IANS): The Centre has increased the windfall gains tax on exports of diesel and aviation turbine fuel (ATF) while keeping the levy on petrol exports unchanged for the fortnight beginning Tuesday. According to a notification issued by the Ministry of Finance, the special additional excise duty (SAED) on diesel exports has been raised to Rs 14 per litre from Rs 13.5 per litre, while the duty on ATF exports has been increased to Rs 12.5 per litre from Rs 9.5 per litre. The SAED on petrol exports remains unchanged at Rs 1.5 per litre. The revised rates came into effect from Tuesday, while duty rates on petrol and diesel meant for domestic consumption have been left unchanged.
The latest revision follows a similar adjustment made in May for the fortnight beginning June 1, when export duties were fixed at Rs 1.5 per litre on petrol, Rs 13.5 per litre on diesel and Rs 9.5 per litre on ATF. The export duty on diesel and ATF was originally imposed in March amid escalating tensions in West Asia following the US-Israel attack on Iran and subsequent retaliation. The windfall tax was introduced to ensure adequate domestic availability of petroleum products and discourage exports during a period of elevated global crude oil prices. Earlier in April, the government had also increased excise duties on petroleum products, including high-speed diesel, raising the export duty on diesel from Rs 21.5 per litre to Rs 55.5 per litre. In a separate notification, the Centre had increased the Road and Infrastructure Cess on diesel to Rs 36 per litre under the provisions of the Finance Act, 2018.