What is APM dismantling all about?
Salil Panchal/Morpheus Inc One of the buzzwords for the government when it speaks of the reform process – besides divestment and telecom deregulation – has been APM dismantling. You must have wondered whether this complex term (linked to the petroleum sector) would have any impact on your daily life. Would the price of petrol, diesel, LPG, kerosene shoot up? Or does this actually mean that these products will actually cost less? Let us have a closer look at what APM dismantling is all about. What does the term APM dismantling mean? In recent years, the term APM (administered pricing mechanism) dismantling has become a crucial issue which politicians, economists and oil/petroleum corporate bigwigs have discussed in detail. The term literally implies the removal of an administered (read artificial) pricing mechanism of petroleum products and a gradual shift towards a pricing based on pure market dynamics. How were petro products priced before APM was dismantled? Prior to April 1, 2002 –
