With petrol prices crossing Rs 420 and diesel Rs 400, Sri Lanka encourages people to work from home

New Delhi: Sri Lanka, facing the worst economic crisis due to the shortage of foreign exchange reserves, increased fuel prices once again on Tuesday thus taking the price of petrol at all-time high of Rs 420 and diesel Rs 400 per litre.

This is the second hike in fuel price in the island nation after it announced a price rise on April 19. Sri Lanka has now raised the petrol price by 24.3 per cent and diesel by 38.4 per cent, taking the most-used Octane 92 petrol price at Rs 420 (USD 1.17) and diesel at Rs 400 (USD 1.11) per litre.

Meanwhile, taking to Twitter, Sri Lankan Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera said, "Public sector workforce will be called to work on the direction of the head of the institute from today. Work from home will be encouraged to minimize the use of fuel and to manage the energy crisis."

(3) Public sector workforce will be called to work on the direction of the head of the institute from today. Work from home will be encouraged to minimize the use of fuel and to manage the energy crisis. pic.twitter.com/JVKrmSYnoc — Kanchana Wijesekera (@kanchana_wij) May 23, 2022

Lanka IOC, the Sri Lankan subsidiary of India's oil major Indian Oil Corporation, has also raised the retail prices of fuel. We have raised our prices to match the CPC, Manoj Gupta, the CEO of LIOC, told news agency PTI. Lanka IOC has been in operation in Sri Lanka since 2002.

The island nation is grappling with an unprecedented economic turmoil, the worst since its independence from Britain in 1948. It is struggling with a shortage of almost all essentials, due to the lack of dollars to pay for the imports. A crippling shortage of foreign reserves has led to long queues for fuel, cooking gas and other essentials while power cuts and soaring food prices heaped misery on the people.

News Agency Reuters, quoting economists has said fuel and power price hikes would be necessary to plug a massive gap in Sri Lanka`s government revenues, but agreed that it would lead to short-term pain.

With Agencies Inputs