(BS)
Amidst rising fuel prices despite an excise cut on petrol and diesel last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a review meeting with Finance Minister Arun Jailtey and Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan here on Friday.
“The PM’s meeting in the morning was on petroleum issues. The discussion centered around increasing domestic oil production, subsidy borne by oil marketing companies (OMCs) and reducing oil imports to cut down the current account deficit,” a senior official said.The meeting assumes significance as the US sanction against Iran kicks-in on November 4 and India is dependent on imports for more than 80 per cent of its oil requirement.
On domestic oil production, Petroleum Minister Pradhan on October 1 said Rs 59 billion of investment had been committed for the exploration of 55 oil and gas blocks awarded through the first round of auctions under the country’s new Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP).
