Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Monday announced a reduction in the cess on petrol and diesel in the state, bringing down their price by Rs 2 per litre.

A litre of petrol cost Rs 84.73 in state capital Bengaluru on Monday while a litre of diesel was available for Rs 76.15. The price of petrol increased 15 paise in Delhi and Mumbai, costing Rs 82.06 per litre in the national Capital and Rs 89.44 per litre in Mumbai. A litre of petrol cost Rs 83.91 in Kolkata and Rs 85.31 in Chennai. A litre of diesel was priced at Rs 73.78 in Delhi, Rs 78.33 in Mumbai, Rs 75.53 in Kolkata, and Rs 78 in Chennai.

In July, the state government’s budget announced a Rs 34,000-crore loan waiver for farmers by raising taxes on petrol and diesel.

The Centre has ruled out any excise duty cuts in petrol and diesel prices but so far Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh have reduced state taxes on fuel. The Andhra Pradesh government announced a reduction of Rs 2 in the value-added tax on petrol and diesel while Vasundhara Raje’s Rajasthan government announced a reduction of 4%, or Rs 2.5, in value-added tax on petrol and diesel. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced a Re 1 reduction in the prices.

The prices of petrol and diesel have continued to rise due to the recent depreciation in the rupee’s value and a rise in international oil rates. While crude oil prices have been around the $80 per barrel mark, the rupee declined against the dollar last week, making imports costlier. On September 10, Opposition parties staged a nationwide shutdown to protest against the rise in fuel prices and decline in rupee’s value.

With the rise in prices, the blame game has also escalated. While the Congress-led Opposition is putting pressure on the government to bring down taxes, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has blamed the massive bills of oil bonds and subsidies from the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance era for their inability to cut taxes.