New Delhi, March 15: India still has a meaningful tax buffer to absorb crude shocks, as excise duties of Rs 19.9 per litre on gasoline and Rs 15.8 per litre on diesel can be cut to protect retail prices until about $110 per barrel crude, a report said on Monday.

The report from Elara Capital said retail gasoline and diesel prices “could be fully protected through excise cuts until roughly $110/bbl, beyond which price hikes on diesel and gasoline would become inevitable”.

It estimated India can absorb a $40–45 crude shock via tax, adding that beyond $110/bbl, the burden would shift from the government to consumers, the report added.

For every $10 per barrel rise in crude, oil marketing companies’ diesel and gasoline margins would fall by Rs 6.3 per litre and LPG losses would rise by Rs 10.2 per kg.

The dynamics implies about Rs 328 billion in annual LPG under‑recovery, the report further said.

Gross refining margins of OMCs could rise by about $5/bbl for every $10/bbl crude move, but that would not fully offset their marketing and LPG losses, the report added.

At current Brent of $100/bbl, earnings could drop sharply around 90-190 per cent absent retail price hike, tax cut, or higher LPG subsidy, it said.

IOCL is better placed among OMCs due to higher refining share, but still vulnerable if crude stays high and retail price unchanged.

“The US-Iran war has changed the way the Indian Oil & Gas sector reacts to crude prices. Our sensitivity analysis at Brent crude oil price of $100, $125 and $150 shows ‘EBITDA swing range’ from a collapse of >400 per cent for OMCs to 10-15x expansion for standalone refiners,” the report explained.

Two-thirds of India’s LNG imports pass via Hormuz, adding a supply risk on the gas side, it noted.

The firm suggested that GAIL is better positioned among gas stocks, adding that is a relatively defensive play in the current environment, as only around 16 per cent of its marketing volumes is dependent on Hormuz-linked LNG, significantly lower than for most peers, limiting direct supply disruption risk.

New Delhi, March 16: As voting for the biennial elections to 37 seats in the Rajya Sabha got underway on Monday, party leaders from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as well as the Opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) seemed certain of their respective candidates winning the elections.

BJP MP Praveen Khandelwal expressed confidence of NDA securing a majority.

He said, “Based on numerical strength, the NDA will clearly secure a full majority. There is no doubt about this. Once again, the NDA will raise its flag with even greater strength in the Rajya Sabha.”

Amid allegations of bribe being offered to Congress MLAs in Odisha, BJD leader Prasanna Acharya told reporters, ” All our MLAs work according to the decision taken by the party. Today also they will vote accordingly. We fully trust our MLAs.”

Notably, the BJD, on Sunday, issued a whip directing suspended MLAs Sanatan Mahakud and Arvind Mohapatra to vote for the party’s authorised candidate. In separate letters, Chief Whip Pramila Mallik stated that despite their suspension for alleged anti-party activities, both legislators remain constitutionally bound to follow the party whip as they were elected on the BJD symbol.

Speaking about allegations of horse-trading against the BJP made by BJD supremo Naveen Patnaik earlier, Acharya said, “We always say that there should be some principle in politics. If big political parties of India, who speak about ethics and principles everyday, work against those then God save the democracy of this country.”

Acharya expressed confidence that both BJD candidates will win the elections, “We are confident of winning the election as we work according to the rules, ethics and principles.”

BJD MLA Sunil Kumar Mohanty added, “It is definitely a privilege for us that all the MLAs are casting their votes for our first Rajya Sabha candidate. We are anxious and looking forward to a good result for our party.”

On the contrary, BJP MLA Tankadhar Tripathy said, “On the very day the Rajya Sabha notification was issued, I had said that the people of Odisha would be happy, while the Opposition members would be surprised with the result.”

Further, Leader of Opposition in the Jharkhand Assembly, Babulal Marandi, said he was sure that BJP National President Nitin Nabin and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will emerge victorious in the polls.

“I congratulate both of them in advance,” he said.

New Delhi, March 16: The Press Information Bureau (PIB) Fact Check unit on Monday issued a warning about an AI-generated deepfake video of former Chief of Army Staff, Manoj Pande, being circulated online by Pakistani propaganda accounts with misleading claims about the Indian Army.

In a statement, the PIB Fact Check unit said the manipulated video falsely portrays Gen. Manoj Pande (Retd.) making controversial remarks regarding the functioning and conduct of the Indian Army.

“Pakistani propaganda accounts are circulating a digitally manipulated video, falsely showing the former Chief of Army Staff, Gen Manoj Pande (Retd.), making false statements regarding the Indian Army. Beware! This is an AI-generated deepfake video,” the PIB Fact Check stated, clarifying that the former Army chief has not made any such statement.

It further cautioned that such digitally altered content is being spread as part of a coordinated disinformation campaign aimed at misleading the public and undermining trust in the Indian Armed Forces. The agency urged citizens to verify information from official and credible sources before sharing it on social media platforms.

“Pakistani propaganda accounts are circulating such manipulated videos as part of a coordinated disinformation campaign to mislead the public and undermine trust in Indian Armed Forces,” it added.

In the manipulated clip circulating online, the former Army chief appears to make remarks alleging that supporting Israel has caused losses to the Indian Army and that soldiers are being forced to become an “ethnic force.” The video also falsely claims that Israeli instructors are training Indian Army personnel to dehumanise certain communities and that the situation could lead to a revolt within the forces.

However, the PIB clarified that the remarks in the viral clip have been digitally fabricated. In the original video, Manoj Pande can be heard speaking about the need for the armed forces to remain prepared for future security challenges.

“We live in a complex world. We should not only be able to deal with the current security challenges but also anticipate the future. Once you anticipate, you must prepare accordingly and develop the capabilities required to effectively fight future wars. The armed forces have to be future-ready,” he said in the authentic video.

The PIB reiterated that such manipulated content is part of attempts to spread misinformation online and advised the public to remain cautious while consuming and sharing sensitive information related to national security.

Earlier on March 10, the PIB Fact Check unit dismissed as fake a viral claim on social media that India had shared the location of an Iranian naval ship with Israel, reportedly based on an AI-generated video of Indian Army chief General Upendra Dwivedi that was widely circulated by Pakistani propaganda accounts and later amplified by a Turkish newspaper.

According to PIB Fact Check, the Turkish newspaper Yeni Safak cited the manipulated video and claimed that India had admitted to sharing the location of an Iranian ship with Israel. However, the government’s fact-checking unit clarified that the claim was completely false and misleading.