New Delhi: The Union Government, already under fire over rising prices, is unlikely to accept the recommendations of Prime Minister-appointed expert group of increasing LPG and kerosene prices.
The panel's recommendation of freeing petrol and diesel prices is also not likely to be implemented, said highly placed sources.
The sources said that the panel headed by former Planning Commission member Kirit Parikh has made just a recommendation and its report is yet to be submitted to the Union Government.
Union Cabinet is likely to discuss issue of fuel price hike on Thursday evening.
Sources said that given the current political scenario where the Centre was already under attack over rising food prices, any hike in fuel prices would have serious fallout.
Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janta Party spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy warned the government that fuel price hike would set the country on fire.
"The country is facing extreme price rise situation and on top of it after the Parikh report government is thinking of hiking the price of fuel. Well it is the Prime Minister's wish if he wants to set the country on fire with fuel price hike but public will not love with it," said Rudy in Patna.
An increase in fuel prices was likely to result in further increase in food prices as the cost of transportation, too, would rise.
The Kirit Parikh Committee has recommended deregulation of fuel prices, which would lead to an increase of Rs 4.72 Rs per litre in petrol prices and Rs 2.33 per litre increase in diesel.
The committee also recommended that the price of LPG domestic cylinders be increased by Es 100 and kerosene by Rs 6 per litre.
The subsidy on kerosene at present is Rs 18.06 a litre while domestic LPG cylinder receives a subsidy of Rs 287.59.
Parikh Committee has recommended that the gap between retail price (after the suggested increase) and the imported cost of fuel should be met by the government and by ONGC and Oil India.
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