The sale of passenger vehicles in India declined 66% month-on-month in the month of May in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic and lockdowns in multiple states, said auto industry body Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) on Friday.

The total passenger vehicles sold in the month stood at 88,045 units in May, as compared to 2,61,633 in April 2021 and 226,975 units in May 2019.

As per SIAM data, two-wheeler dispatches to dealers declined to 3,52, 717 compared to 9,95,097 in April this year and 1,725,204 units in May of 2019.

Motorcycles decelerated by 56% in May to 2,95,257 units as compared to 6,67,841 sold in April.

Commenting on the May 2021 data, Mr Rajesh Menon, Director General, SIAM said “Most part of May was under lockdown in many states thus impacting overall sales and production. Many members had shut down their manufacturing plants to divert oxygen from industrial use for medical purposes”.

“Since, both May 2020 and May 2021 were abnormal months because of the Covid-19 situation and lockdowns, comparison of these two months holds no meaning. However, a comparison of May 2021 sales with May 2019, which was a normal year, presents a realistic picture. So, as compared to May 2019, sales in the month of May 2021, for Passenger vehicles stood at 88,045 units (- 61.2%), for Two-wheelers at 3,52,717 units (- 79.6%) and for Three-Wheelers at just 1,251 units (- 97.6%),” he added.

Menon further said that the Indian Automobile Industry stands committed to support the Government in its battle against Covid-19 pandemic through various initiatives to augment availability of oxygen, support health care infrastructure and local communities. OEMs have also taken up large scale vaccination of their employees, family members and dealer partners.