FADA, the dealers’ federation, reports provisional Navratri registrations down 6.52% year-on-year, to 11,23,086 from 12,01,479. Passenger vehicles fell 21.91%, to 1,82,728 from 2,34,004, while electric passenger vehicles grew 25.97%, to 12,305 from 9,768.
Electric vehicles are included within the relevant vehicle totals, not a separate population to add on.
The Breakdown
October 11–20, 2026 spans ten days; September 22–October 2, 2025 spans eleven. Dividing each total by its window’s day count gives daily-average changes of +2.82% overall and −14.10% for passenger vehicles. One fewer day does not erase that gap.
A daily average fixes the denominator, not the calendar. It treats the days in each window as interchangeable. That is a useful arithmetic check, but not a seasonally adjusted measure of demand.
Seasonal adjustment involves estimating recurring calendar patterns rather than merely dividing by elapsed days. The mix of weekdays and the timing of moving holidays can affect comparisons. The Office for National Statistics explains these as distinct calendar effects; a daily average does not estimate or remove them.
Why This Matters
Dealers entered the season carrying stock. FADA’s September report estimated passenger-vehicle inventory at around 43–45 days at September-end, with 60% of passenger-vehicle dealers reporting higher stock because of the approaching festivals. That is a dated starting point, not an October 21 inventory reading.
The business question is how quickly that stock converts into completed sales. A national total is a poor substitute for checking the models a dealership actually holds. Our earlier auto-market explainer sets out the distinction between factory dispatches, registrations and dealer inventory.
The Navratri release does not identify what caused the passenger-vehicle decline or provide an updated dealer-stock estimate.
Compiled on October 21, the provisional data cover 1,468 of 1,469 regional transport offices. Telangana’s three-wheeler, commercial-vehicle and tractor registrations are missing. The report does not establish identical coverage across years.
The Crunch
Navratri is one registration window, not the full festive season’s verdict.