Ajay Gabhane of Nagpur purchased a Kia Sonet on the eve of Diwali. He mentioned that his family found it right to replace their aging sedan with an exciting compact SUV during the festive season.

Like Gabhane, Tushar Deshpande chose the festive season to purchase a new passenger car during the Diwali festive season in Pune.

It were the individuals like Gabhane and Deshpande who contributed towards a cheerful festive season and Diwali for the Indian passenger vehicle and two-wheeler industry.

After witnessing a slowdown in sales performance during the first and second quarter of FY2023-24, it was the festive season that saw the auto industry uplift its spirit on the back of higher passenger vehicle and two-wheeler sales, albeit asking the underlying challenges that saw dealers and their association go to town stating that inventory levels were at an all-time high.

Until 29 October 2024, passenger vehicle registrations reached a record 4,25,000 units, according to the Vahan data. The previous peak was in January 2024 at 3,99,112 units.

With the Diwali festival spreading into early November, it is expected that that the passenger vehicle registrations will bridge the 4,50,000 milestone. This would mean that almost 15,000 units were registered every day.  

Starting at a slower pace, the festive sales picked up pace only close to Diwali this calendar year with two-wheelers registrations marking the most surge. Inside of the two-wheeler domain, it was the electric two-wheelers that contributed wholesomely to the sales surge. Among India's top electric two-wheeler OEMs, Ola Electric lead the pack with TVS Motors a close second and Bajaj Auto a close third.

Contributing handsomely to what is already considered as the record sales year (FY2024-25) for electric two-wheeler sales stood at 109,643 units as on 28 October 2024, as per the Vahan portal data.

This electric two-wheeler sales performance in the country should provide an interesting insight into how the Indian EV market is progressing and shaping up as well. 

With the main celebratory period of Diwali falling during the last days of October made for an interesting trend in terms of October 2024 sales and November 2024 sales.

With a sale of no less than 115,000 units expected by the time Diwali gets over in early November 2024, a significant uptake in sales performance would have been written in the financial books as compared to the sale of 88,156 units in September 2024.

The superior performance of two-wheeler sales overall as compared to passenger cars during the festive season could be attributed to the uptake in rural markets of the country, read a report by Motilal Oswal Financial Services. During the festive season, the commuter two-wheelers experienced the highest traction among the ICE models and electric powered ones, the report mentioned.

In his LinkedIn post, Ravi Bhatia, President and Director, Jato Dynamics, averred, “India's automotive sector experienced a classic relief rally in October 2024, driven by festive sentiment and aggressive discounting. However, with the impending Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) year change requiring sustained discounts, questions arise about the rally's sustainability.”

The challenges, he said, were the sub-INR 10,00,000 passenger vehicle segment continuing to be under pressure, the upcoming VIN year change necessitating continued discounts and the question of demand sustaining post the festive season.
 

Image for representative purpose only.

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Flying Flea, the newly established urban electric mobility brand from Royal Enfield, has officially commenced retail deliveries of its debut electric motorcycle, the FF.C6, in Bengaluru. Alongside the vehicle rollout, the brand has introduced an integrated connected ownership ecosystem and a localised service framework.

The FF.C6 is available in two colour configurations – Storm Black and Flea Green. Flying Flea is utilising a city-by-city rollout strategy, establishing its initial commercial footprint in Bengaluru before expanding to other markets.

The vehicle is positioned with two distinct ownership pricing structures – INR 279,000 (ex-showroom) for the complete motorcycle and the integrated battery pack infrastructure. It can be had as Battery-as-a-Service (BaaS) Tier at INR 199,000, which lowers the initial acquisition cost by unbundling the battery pack from the vehicle chassis, allowing owners to pay for energy utilisation separately.

To support the product rollout, Flying Flea has deployed a decentralised hub-and-spoke service network across Bengaluru to manage both routine maintenance and specialised technical repairs. The Primary Hub located in BTM Layout has a specialised facility that is equipped to handle complex electrical diagnostics, battery health management and advanced technical support.

The spoke centres will act as distributors across various sectors of the city. These touchpoints are optimised for high-throughput routine service, software recalibrations and minor wear-and-tear maintenance.

Flying Flea is leveraging Royal Enfield's existing corporate footprint by establishing dedicated ‘shop-in-shop’ formats inside operational Royal Enfield showrooms and service bays. This integration grants the new brand immediate scaling advantages and extensive service reach.

Additionally, all FF.C6 units are backed by a standard 24x7 Roadside Assistance (RSA) program to provide continuous emergency support to riders.

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Fleetguard Filters Pvt. Ltd. (FFPL) marked a major milestone on 10 June 2026 in Pune by completing 1,500 free mobile medical health camps. Over the past four years, this corporate social responsibility initiative has expanded preventive healthcare access across Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad and Nashik in partnership with the Samarth Yuva Foundation.

The programme has delivered doorstep medical care and health awareness to underserved communities, resulting in over 500,000 free health screenings for blood pressure, blood sugar and complete blood counts. Additionally, the camps have provided 3,500 mammography screenings, eye check-ups, more than 100,000 reading spectacles and dental care services benefiting over 50,000 individuals.

A special event titled Service and Dedication was held in Pune, gathering healthcare professionals, volunteers and community members. Recognised as a notable regional outreach effort, the initiative promotes early diagnosis and regular check-ups. FFPL continues to prioritise healthcare, education and community development through its CSR programmes to create sustainable social impact.

Niranjan Kirloskar, Managing Director, Fleetguard Filters Pvt. Ltd., said, “At Fleetguard Filters, we believe that access to quality healthcare is fundamental to building stronger and healthier communities. Through our CSR initiatives, we strive to create meaningful and lasting impact in the communities we serve. The milestone of 1,500 free mobile medical health camps reflects the power of collaboration and sustained commitment towards improving healthcare accessibility for underserved sections of society. We remain committed to supporting initiatives that contribute to healthier and more resilient communities.”

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Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL) has launched a new brand campaign ahead of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, featuring its brand ambassadors Smriti Mandhana and Jemimah Rodrigues. The campaign builds on the success of the earlier men’s World Cup initiative titled ‘Deewane India ka Deewana Humsafar’ but presents a distinct narrative focused on celebrating the rising support and admiration for women’s cricket in India.

The campaign directly challenges the traditional label of cricket as a gentleman’s game with the bold message that the ‘gentle’ has been removed from the sport. Through strong visuals, it highlights the determination, skill and barrier-breaking performances of women cricketers, showing how their passion is transforming the game and deepening India’s love for cricket.

As a Premier Partner of the ICC, HMIL plans to engage fans during the tournament with curated digital content and targeted outreach. These efforts aim to amplify the excitement of the Women’s T20 World Cup, bring fans closer to the action and strengthen Hyundai’s emotional connection with cricket enthusiasts.

Virat Khullar, Head – Marketing, Hyundai Motor India Limited, said, “At Hyundai, we believe sport has the power to unite communities, inspire dreams and create meaningful connections. The overwhelming response to our ‘Deewane India Ka Deewana Humsafar’ campaign reaffirmed the deep emotional bond between cricket and its fans. With the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, we are proud to celebrate a new chapter of this passion by recognising the growing influence of women’s cricket and the millions of fans who continue to champion the game. This campaign aims to celebrate that shift and spotlight the incredible journeys of players like Smriti Mandhana and Jemimah Rodrigues, who continue to break stereotypes and inspire millions. As a proud partner of the ICC, Hyundai remains committed to supporting this new era of cricket and standing alongside the champions who embody the true spirit of ‘Deewangi’.”

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Vega Auto Accessories, a leading helmet manufacturer, has announced a strategic investment in Tageze Medical ID System, a Pune-based emergency technology platform operated by Techsocio Projects.

The transaction marks a direct entry for the traditional protective gear manufacturer into the connected safety and digital emergency response sectors, moving the brand's product ecosystem from pure accident prevention into active medical response coordination.

Tageze develops a decentralised, application-free medical identification platform. Utilising ruggedised, weather-proof QR-code tags integrated directly onto the helmet shell, the technology creates an immediate digital profile for first responders.

During a critical road incident (golden hour), bystanders, emergency responders, or healthcare professionals can simply scan the helmet-mounted QR code with any standard smartphone camera. The system instantly loads a secure, cloud-hosted medical profile outlining: primary and secondary emergency contact routing; blood group categorisation, known allergies, chronic medical conditions and current medications; health and vehicular insurance policy details to expedite hospital admission procedures.

Because app installation requirements often introduce friction during high-stress rescue operations, the platform operates entirely via a responsive mobile web interface. It supports multilingual localisation, dynamically translating medical profiles based on the browser settings of the first responder – a critical feature for long-distance touring riders navigating diverse linguistic states and countries.

The capital injection from Vega will be utilised to expand Tageze's technical infrastructure and scale its market footprint across India and its existing international distribution nodes.

For Vega, the alignment signals a broader shift occurring across the personal protective equipment (PPE) sector. As global motorcycling demographics demand higher technology integration, manufacturers are shifting beyond standard impact testing (such as ECE 22.06 or DOT standards) to capture the digital layer of post-crash telemetry and identity verification. The companies confirmed that the investment will fund a dedicated R&D pipeline aimed at embedding next-generation, hardware-level emergency tracking chips and intelligent response systems directly into future Vega and AXOR helmet lineups.

"At Vega, rider safety has always been at the core of everything we do. Through our partnership with Tageze, we are looking at safety beyond the helmet itself by enabling faster access to critical information during emergencies. We believe this is an important step towards building a more connected and responsive rider safety ecosystem," Vega said in a statement.

Deepak Gaikwad, Founder & CEO, Tageze Medical ID System, added, "Our mission has always been to make life-saving information accessible when it matters most. Partnering with Vega allows us to expand the reach of this technology and bring emergency preparedness closer to riders across India and global markets."

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