India’s energy consumption is growing at three times the global average with the nation's oil imports estimated at five million barrels of crude oil in a day, the Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Hardeep Singh Puri, said.

 

By keeping domestic fuel prices “affordable” for consumers, India’s energy consumption is now growing at a healthy 3 percent annually, compared to the global average rise of one percent, he said, according to a Wam news agency report.

 

Speaking to correspondents in New Delhi, Puri said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had monitored domestic fuel availability during volatility in the global energy market and ordered cuts in central excise duties and value added tax on petrol and diesel. These made prices affordable for consumers.

 

Puri said India imports five million barrels of crude oil in a day. “We bought from wherever we could when shortages were feared.”