Indian benchmark indices fell for a fourth straight session on Thursday. The BSE Sensex closed 570.59 points, or 0.79 percent, lower at 71,909.70. The Nifty 50 shed 198.50 points to end at 22,421.95.

The Sensex dropped more than 900 points intraday to touch 71,527.98 before recovering late in trade. The fall came ahead of the extended weekend, with markets closed on Friday for Gandhi Jayanti.

Auto stocks led the decline. The Nifty Auto index fell 3.46 percent after weak September sales numbers. Bajaj Auto was the biggest drag, sliding over 7 percent. Nifty IT was the lone gainer, rising 2.17 percent.

Heavy foreign selling weighed on sentiment. Provisional data showed FIIs sold over Rs 10,148 crore on Wednesday. The rupee fell to 96.3150 per dollar, its weakest in two months.

Rising crude oil prices near $100 a barrel and surging US bond yields added pressure. The decline capped an eighth straight weekly fall for the benchmarks.