As the price of petrol crossed the Rs 100 per litre mark on Wednesday, 17 February, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that if the previous government had focused on reducing India’s dependence on energy imports then the middle class would not have been so burdened, reported PTI.
Fuel rates were hiked for the ninth day in a row in Rajasthan on Wednesday.
Without directly referring to the hike in retail fuel prices, which are affected by international rates, PM Modi said that India in the 2019- 20 financial year, imported 85 percent of its petrol and 53 percent of its gas requirements, according to PTI.
The international rates for natural gas have spiralled in recent weeks.
“Can a diverse and talented nation like ours be so energy import dependent?” he asked, addressing an online event to inaugurate oil and gas projects in poll-bound Tamil Nadu.