India’s diesel sales drop 7.5%

New Delhi: India’s diesel consumption slumped by 7.5 per cent in November on a fall in demand in the transportation sector where some took Diwali break, preliminary data of State-owned firms showed on Friday. Diesel consumption dropped to 6.78 million tonnes in November from 7.33 million tonnes a year back. Industry officials said this was largely because some truckers take Diwali break to visit their homes and the demand is largely going to come back this month. Diesel is India’s most consumed fuel, accounting for almost 40 per cent of all petroleum product consumption. Transport sector accounts for 70 per cent of all diesel sales in the country. Petrol sales by three state-owned fuel retailers rose 7.5 per cent to 2.86 million tonnes on increased personal vehicle movement during the festive season. Fuel consumption has been on a see-saw over the last couple of months.