Now with a better telecom policy in place, Kumar said that his government would very shortly grant new basic and cellular licenses and encourage foreign investment in telecom.

However, he was hard put to explain the constant discord between the Department of Telecom (DoT) and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). Questions were raised, particularly with reference to the ongoing tussle between the state-owned Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd and TRAI.

The contention of many correspondents was that the Indian government was not clear about the telecom reforms and was "constantly undermining the regulator, a feature that would prove detrimental to foreign investment".

Kumar put up a valiant show and said that the dispute was between one service provider, MTNL and the regulator. "The position has not been well appreciated, government is keen on having a strong and independent regulator," he said.

Telecom industry representatives from India also did their bit at the "interactive" press conference. Vijai Kapur of CII said that private telcos were willing to provide their expertise to the Indian government in marketing the success stories of telecom.

COAI chairman KV Seshaysayee also said that the new telecom policy would drive growth and produce better results for the cellular sector.

But, despite the brave talk, the feeling that India may be left out of the telecom revolution was prevalent, with telecom professionals from allover the world saying that they had adopted a wait-and-watch attitude at the moment.

Experts say that India, which was hailed as the biggest potential market after China in 1994 when telecom was partially deregulated in the country, would now have to do a lot of work for improving its image. They agree that while the new policy takes positive steps, like the opening up of domestic long-distance services in 2000 and allowing multiple operators in some service areas, a lot more needs to be done in terms of ensuring a level-playing field.

Experts also hasten to add that the move to revenue sharing, from up-front license fees, would fuel growth. In addition, they say that the corporatisation of DoT, the strengthening of an independent regulator and continuity are essential for India to attract foreign capital in telecom.