India increased oil purchases from Russia. India has been making record purchases of oil from Russia for months. In continuation of that, India set a new record last January too. According to the Economic Times, India bought 1.4 million barrels of oil per day from Russia in January.

According to a report by Economic Times, India bought 28 percent of the oil it bought from the world market in January from Russia. But before sending troops to Ukraine in February 2022, India’s oil purchase from Russia was 0.2 percent. It rose to 28 percent in a year. Russia is supplying oil to India at a lower price than the international market. India is also saving foreign exchange by buying cheap oil.

India’s oil purchases from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) have decreased due to increased oil purchases from Russia. In 2008, India bought 87 percent of its oil from OPEC countries. In 2022, it has come down to 64.5 percent. Reuters has given these figures by analyzing data on India’s oil imports. Despite this, Iraq and Saudi Arabia were India’s top oil suppliers after Russia last year.

A month ago, the European Union reached a consensus on imposing a price cap on Russian oil transported by sea. At the same time, New Delhi increased its imports of Russian oil. According to Reuters, currently the EU is buying Russian oil at a much lower price than the price limit or 60 dollars per barrel. India seized that opportunity. But many countries like Bangladesh are not able to take that opportunity. In this, the import cost of the country is increasing, the burden is increasing on the buyers.

The West imposed an embargo on Russian oil after Russia launched an attack on Ukraine in February last year. As a result, the price of oil started to increase in the world market. After seven long years it crossed $100 per barrel. At one stage this price rose to 139 USD per barrel. It increases the cost of importing oil. Along with that, the dollar exchange rate also increased. Dollar-crisis is created, foreign exchange reserves decrease. But not listening to Western sanctions, India increased its purchases of Russian oil. Analysts of the energy sector believe that the country has avoided a major crisis.

India’s Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar was asked in various international forums, why is India buying Russian oil by breaking Western sanctions? All the answers he gave in response became popular among the netizens. Jaishankar said, after the start of the war, Europe bought Russian oil six times more than India, so why won’t India buy it?

But Jaishankar’s boldest answer is why Europe thinks its problems will be problems for others. That is, this war is full of problems of Europe-America with Russia, it has nothing to do with India.