Mr Noblet said: "India is instrumental in helping in our brand target of more than doubling the Meridien global portfolio in three years" and added, "We would like to open 250 hotels worldwide by 2003".

Mr Noblet was in Kochi on Sunday in connection with the inauguration of Le Meriden, Kochi, which has been set up in association with Galfar (India) promoted by NRI Mr P Mohamed Ali.

He said Le Meridien, the luxury brand of Forte Hotel Group, currently has a global portfolio of more than 150 hotels in 55 countries worldwide, with an annual turnover of over $2 billion. Le Meridien Hotels combine a European style and individual character with a genuine respect for local culture, he added.

In India, Le Meridien has hotels in New Delhi, Pune, Bangalore and Chennai.Mr Noblet said the group will be opening a hotel and a golf resort in Kathmandu, Nepal in February 2002. The hotels currently under construction include Le Meridien Juhu in Mumbai and Le Meridien Goa, which will commence construction in the third quarter this year. The group is negotiating for hotels in Ahmedabad, Hyderabad and Jaipur.

Mr Noblet said the Forte Group is bringing its international reservation system, Fortres 2, to India. Fortres is an online reservation system , which interfaces with hotel's front office system to provide instant confirmation for any of the 550 Forte/Le Meridien hotels worldwide. For hotel reservations in India, Le Meridien recently established another first for an international hotel group, with the opening of a India reservations centre for domestic and worldwide reservations. He said in the last six months, Le Meridien has opened regional offices in Chennai and Bangalore, besides the already existing offices in Mumbai and Delhi.

Mr Russel Sharpe, senior vice-president, sales and marketing, (Middle East and West Asia) who was also in Kochi to oversee the functioning of the new venture said that the Forte Group, currently the largest hotel operator in th United Kingdom is all set to replicate its position in India.

"Our expansion strategy in India calls for a presence in all the major commercial and tourist centres," he said.