Saturday was a historic day for people in Delhi because for the first time the price of petrol crossed the Rs 80 mark. With an increase of 39 paise this morning, petrol was being sold at Rs 80.38 per litre in the national capital. On Friday, the price was Rs 79.99.

Meanwhile, the price of diesel has been hiked by 44 paise and was priced at Rs 72.51 per litre in Delhi on Saturday.

In Mumbai, petrol became dearer by 48 paise and was being sold at Rs 87.77 per litre, while diesel is now priced at Rs 76.98 per litre.

Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the hike in fuel prices is mainly due to depreciation of rupee against the dollar, said news agency ANI. “Petrol and diesel should come under the Goods and Services Tax. I accept that people are facing problem. Oil producing countries like Iran and Venezuela had said they will increase productivity. But as per the report for July-August, they did not,” he said.

In the past one month, prices of diesel have increased by nearly Rs 4 per litre and that of petrol by Rs 3 per litre.

The Congress and the Left parties have announced nationwide protests against the hike. The Congress has called for a Bharat bandh on September 10, and the Left parties have called for a similar strike on the same day. The DMK has also supported the call for nationwide protest over increasing fuel prices.

Taking a dig at the Modi government on Friday, senior Congress leader and former Union minister Anand Sharma said, “The Congress is shouldering its duty as a responsible Opposition by raising the people’s voice. The central government has failed to pass on the benefits of a low crude oil price by reducing central excise duty.”