India's auto sales volume will take 3-4 years to recover: Industry body

Nifty auto index, which tumbled nearly 11 per cent in 2019, crashed over 31% in March

India's auto sales volume will take another 3-4 years to reach 2018 levels, an industry body executive said on Tuesday, as the coronavirus-induced lockdown hurt monthly revenue and increased pressure on a sector already reeling from poor demand.

The pandemic-related disruption to the supply chain comes at a time when India's auto industry was already facing a slowdown in demand and government rules to adopt tougher emission standards forced carmakers to hike prices, driving customers away.

India's passenger vehicle sales rose 3 per cent to 3.37 million units in fiscal 2018-19, but fell by 18 per cent a year later due