Construction Equipment Industry Charts the Road to a Trillion-Dollar Economy at ICEMA Annual Session 2026

The Indian Construction Equipment Manufacturers' Association (ICEMA) hosted its Annual Session 2026 in New Delhi, under the theme “Machines that Build India — CE at the Heart of a Trillion-Dollar Economy.” The Annual Session brought together senior government leadership, policymakers and industry captains to deliberate on the Construction Equipment (CE) industry's role in powering India's infrastructure build-out, manufacturing competitiveness and the country's journey towards Viksit Bharat 2047.

The Session was addressed by Shri H.D. Kumaraswamy, Hon'ble Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises; and Shri G. Kishan Reddy, Hon'ble Union Minister for Coal and Mines, along with Dr. R. Balasubramaniam, Member, NITI Aayog, and Mahmood Ahmed, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. Deepak Shetty, President, ICEMA and CEO & Managing Director, JCB India, led the industry's engagement with policymakers through the day, alongside senior ICEMA members and industry leaders.

Shri H.D. Kumaraswamy, Hon'ble Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, Government of India, said, "I appreciate ICEMA and its consistent efforts to strengthen the construction and infrastructure equipment industry in India, a contribution that is critical to the nation's progress. The Scheme for Enhancement of Construction and Infrastructure Equipment, announced in the Union Budget 2026–27, will help promote the manufacturing of critical equipment and components, strengthen our domestic supply chain, and reduce our dependency on imports. I am confident that with close collaboration between Government and industry, India can become a leading global centre for construction equipment manufacturing and technology."

Shri G. Kishan Reddy, Hon'ble Union Minister for Coal and Mines, Government of India, said, "India's mining sector reforms over the past decade, moving to a transparent, auction-based system for allocating coal and mineral blocks, have helped bring greater investment, competition and technology into this space, and ICEMA and its member companies have been valuable partners in this journey. The next phase of growth in mining will be driven by technology, artificial intelligence, drones, satellite mapping and modern, mechanised equipment, and I see this as a significant opportunity for ICEMA and the entire construction and mining equipment industry to deepen its role in India's mining growth story."

Dr. R. Balasubramaniam, Member, NITI Aayog, said, "For a sector like construction equipment, growth cannot happen in isolation, it depends on the capacity of the larger infrastructure ecosystem to absorb what the industry produces, and on the skilled manpower needed to deploy it. The way forward is for Government, industry and the States to stop operating as separate stakeholders and start functioning as true partners, each accountable to the other, each willing to close the other's gaps, because that is the only way India can achieve the scale of growth it aspires to."

Mahmood Ahmed, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, said, "The road sector commands the largest share of the Government's capital expenditure today, and the numbers speak for themselves, our national highway network has grown to nearly one-and-a-half lakh kilometres in a decade, with construction pace roughly tripling in the same period. Partners like ICEMA and the construction equipment industry have been central to this story, manufacturing the vast majority of their equipment in India and adapting quickly to cleaner emission standards. Going forward, our focus is on building a safer, more connected ecosystem, better equipment, better-trained operators, greater digital tracking, and extending this partnership to off-highway and mining equipment as well, because Government and industry can only get there by working together."

Deepak Shetty, President, ICEMA and CEO & Managing Director, JCB India, said, "India's Construction Equipment industry has emerged as a strategic pillar of the country's infrastructure and manufacturing ambitions. As India accelerates its journey towards Viksit Bharat 2047, through the proposed Construction Infrastructure Equipment (CIE) Scheme, the industry has a unique opportunity to scale manufacturing, deepen localisation, strengthen exports and drive technology adoption. This will further increase our commitment to the vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat and Make in India.”

Shetty also highlighted the strong growth in exports, despite moderation in domestic demand. He said, “One of the most encouraging developments this year has been the strong growth in exports. Despite the challenges witnessed in the domestic market, exports have continued to perform robustly, demonstrating that equipment manufactured in India can successfully compete in global markets. Our vision is clear: to move from Made for India to Made in India for the World.

What is particularly encouraging is the industry’s growing presence in developed markets. Increasing exports to the USA, Europe and the UK are a strong testament to the quality, technology and innovation embedded in equipment manufactured in India. This success gives us greater confidence in our capabilities and reinforces India’s potential to emerge as a globally competitive manufacturing hub for construction equipment.”

“Through ICEMA, we remain committed to working closely with Government and all stakeholders to create an industry that is innovative, sustainable, globally competitive and capable of supporting India's long-term growth aspirations.”, he further added.

India continues to be the world's third-largest construction equipment market, with the sector estimated at USD 10 billion in FY25 and projected to grow to USD 15 billion by 2030. While the industry saw a temporary moderation in FY26 — with total equipment sales at 1,36,995 units, a ~2% decline over FY25, driven by a ~7% dip in domestic demand amid slower infrastructure execution — exports registered a robust ~32% growth over the same period, reinforcing the rising global competitiveness of Indian-manufactured construction equipment. ICEMA projects the industry to return to growth in FY27, supported by the Government's continued capex push, including a public capex outlay of ₹12.2 lakh crore, faster project execution, and the roll-out of the CIE Scheme.

The deliberations at the one-day event concluded that the construction equipment (CE) industry continues to play a critical role in building the backbone of India’s economy, with the economic multiplier effect of infrastructure spending contributing to strong Q1 FY’27 GDP growth of 7.8%. The proposed Construction Infrastructure Equipment (CIE) Scheme is expected to play an important role in attracting investment, deepening localisation, and strengthening India’s capital goods and construction equipment manufacturing ecosystem. Discussions also highlighted industry and policy perspectives on trade, tariffs, and market access, particularly in the context of the CE industry’s Vision 2030 target of achieving US$3 billion in exports. Mineral security, mechanisation, and the need to further strengthen the domestic mining equipment ecosystem through greater localisation also emerged as key priorities.

ICEMA reiterated its commitment to working in close partnership with the Government and its member companies to strengthen the Construction Equipment industry's contribution to India's infrastructure-led growth, manufacturing self-reliance and global competitiveness — positioning the sector as a critical enabler of the country's ambition to become a trillion-dollar manufacturing economy and a Viksit Bharat by 2047.