Navratri 2026 construction equipment sales: 2,240 machines, the only segment below 2024

Construction equipment was the one vehicle segment that sat out the festive rush. FADA’s provisional Navratri’26 data, released on 21 October, counts 2,240 wheeled construction machines registered between 11 and 20 October. That is 1.97% below last year’s festival and 16.45% below Navratri 2024, while every other category in the table finished above its 2024 level.

What FADA’s Navratri print shows

The Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations builds these numbers from RTO registrations, collated on 21 October from 1,468 of 1,469 RTOs. Autocar Professional carried the same construction equipment figures that day. FADA president Sai Giridhar called the 6.52% overall dip against 2025 “largely optical”, because Navratri’25 ran eleven days and coincided with the GST 2.0 roll-out. FADA flags missing Telangana data for three-wheelers, commercial vehicles and tractors only. The construction equipment row carries no such note.

Why did machines miss the festive lift?

Adjust for the extra day and the picture shifts a little. At 224 machines a day, this Navratri ran about 8% ahead of last year’s pace. Against September’s full-month figure of 6,486 units, it sits about 4% above that month’s daily average of 216. The festival added little. Two-wheelers and tractors follow the calendar because families and farmers buy on auspicious dates. A backhoe loader or wheel loader gets bought when a contract mobilises, and the post-monsoon start of earthwork sets that date.

The 2024 comparison is the uncomfortable one. Commercial vehicles are 16.47% up on two years ago and machines are 16.45% down. FADA’s CV figure mixes buses, goods carriers and tippers with no split, so it can’t tell us whether site haulage grew. The count also covers only wheeled machines that take an RTO registration. Crawler machines, which are not driven on public roads, generally sit outside it.

What it means for buyers

Our take: flat festive registrations after a strong September suggest dealers may still be holding the stock they built before the season. In September, Escorts Kubota reported dispatching 795 construction machines while FADA credited it with 431 registrations. If that gap hasn’t closed, a buyer pricing a backhoe loader before Diwali has room to ask for a sharper price, a longer free-service period or a finance subvention. Get written quotes from JCB and at least one of ACE, Escorts Kubota or Bull Machines, each with a validity date.

Contractors with a firm start date for winter earthwork lose little by buying now. Those still waiting on a letter of award can afford to wait for the full October print first.

FAQ

How many construction machines were sold during Navratri 2026?

FADA’s provisional data counts 2,240 wheeled construction equipment registrations from 11 to 20 October 2026. That is down 1.97% on Navratri 2025 and 16.45% on Navratri 2024.

Why does FADA compare Navratri 2026 with 2024?

Navratri 2025 ran eleven days and overlapped the GST 2.0 roll-out, which pulled demand into that window. FADA treats Navratri 2024, a ten-day festival, as the cleaner benchmark.

Does the FADA figure include excavators?

It counts wheeled machines registered at RTOs, such as backhoe loaders and wheel loaders. Crawler excavators are generally not road-registered, so they are not in the count.

Related on DesiMachines: Construction equipment sales September 2026: retail up 38%, JCB claws back share

Source: Autocar Professional