BENGALURU: Indian shares closed higher on Tuesday, boosted by automobile stocks and an emergency-use nod for Bharat Biotech's COVID-19 shot in kids, with investors awaiting the country's retail inflation data due later in the day.

The NSE Nifty 50 index ended 0.26% higher at 17,991.95, while the S&P BSE Sensex closed up 0.25% at 60,284.31 after falling earlier in the day. Both the indexes had scaled record highs the previous session.

An expert panel of India's drug regulator recommended on Tuesday Bharat Biotech's Covaxin for emergency use in children aged two to 18 years, making it the first Covid-19 vaccine in the country to get a nod for use in kids below 12 years.