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COVER STORY

demand for backhoe loaders. In addition, growth of agriculture
sector is further shaping the landscape for backhoe loaders. The
mining industry has also witnessed high growth in recent years,
where backhoe loaders are used for digging and excavation
process.

Demand boosters:
All backhoe loaders manufactured in the country have a
simple design with a rigid chassis and currently fall in the 49-100
horsepower range. In terms of sales by horsepower categories,
the market has been witnessing a changing trend, particularly
from the last year, with rising share of the under 50 horsepower
category. The most popular models sold in India still feature a
70-79 horsepower engine, 2-wheel drive, side-shift, a 1.0 m3
loader bucket and a 0.23-0.25 m3 backhoe bucket. Centre mount
models have only limited appeal, and some demand exists for
higher horsepower and 4-wheel drive machines.
An interesting insight by Off-highway Research highlights that India
is by far the world’s largest backhoe loader market, with more
than 37,000 machines sold last year. Customers have traditionally
favored machines with a 75-horsepower engine. However, the
introduction of CEV Bharat Stage IV emissions laws for non-road
equipment from the first quarter of 2021 caused a marked
change in preferences. The laws require lower exhaust emissions
from wheeled equipment which can be driven on public highways
i.e., including backhoe loaders.
The lower cut-off for the laws is 37 kW (50 horsepower). This has seen
the development of a new range of 49 horsepower machines
from all the main suppliers to provide a cheaper alternative to
traditionally powered machines, which now cost more due to
the technology required to achieve emissions compliance. This
category of equipment barely existed five years ago, but in 2021,
it accounted for almost a third of backhoe loader sales in India.

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