---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Fri, 5 May 2006 10:20:23 +0530 From: Debashish_Ghosh_-_Hindalco_Kolkata_Library/KOL_JD/Hindalco/ABG@adityabirla.c om India's heated growth attracts investments from home and abroad Source: http://graphics.eiu.com/files/ad_pdfs/2006Ereadiness_Ranking_WP.pdf India's IT and business process outsourcing industries are among the world's most analysed in recent years. Now, the potential of its local telecoms market is beginning to attract attention. Nearly 50m fixed subscribers and 75m mobile users have created opportunity, and with a population of over 1bn there is enormous potential for growth. The government seems to agree, and it sees the virtue of investment in developing services: a telecoms consultancy, Gartner, estimates that over US$16bn will be invested in 2006, a year-on-year increase of 27%, and it projects this figure to reach US$32bn by 2009. The Department of Telecommunications has set a target of 250m fixed and mobile users by 2007. Such growth potential, combined with its competitiveness in low-cost manufacturing, is attracting foreign investment. If planned handset ventures by such firms as Nokia (Finland) and Elcoteq (Estonia) pan out, foreign direct investment in telecoms equipment manufacturing should reach US$1bn in 2006, according to India's communications minister.