Delhi’s diesel consumption has been heavily influenced by a rapid shift away from diesel vehicles to petrol, CNG and electric vehicles over the past decade. Diesel sales in the capital in 2024-25 were down 63% from their peak in 2015-16, according to petroleum and natural gas ministry data. Increasing air pollution, which stretches for months in winter and restricts the movement of diesel-powered vehicles as well as factory and construction activity in the National Capital Region, has also helped drive down fuel consumption. Neighbouring Haryana witnessed a barely 0.26% growth in diesel consumption, while Punjab and Himachal Pradesh registered a decline of 3.5% and 1%, respectively.
In the last financial year, state oil companies rationalised intra-state freight, lowering pump prices at many locations that traditionally had higher rates due to their greater distance from fuel depots. This, in some cases, made those pumps more attractive for consumers, shifting some sales from adjoining states, said an industry executive, explaining the decline in diesel sales in Punjab.
Three southern states-Andhra Pradesh (-3.5%), Karnataka (-1%) and Telangana (-0.6%)-witnessed a decline, while Tamil Nadu (0.9%) and Kerala (0.25%) registered marginal increase in sales. An increase in value-added tax by Karnataka, the third-largest diesel consumer in the country, may have weighed on the state’s sales last year, the executive said.
Uttar Pradesh, the largest diesel consumer among states, witnessed a 3% increase in consumption in 2024-25, above the national average of 2%. The Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj last year, which drew millions of devotees from across the country for a holy dip in the Ganges, helped push up diesel consumption. UP accounts for about 11% of total national diesel consumption.
Maharashtra, the second-largest consumer of diesel, witnessed a 5.3% increase in sales, while Madhya Pradesh clocked a 5.5% rise and Rajasthan 5.8%. Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, which have large mining operations, registered 9% and 7% diesel sales growth, respectively.
