"There have been three or four general elections but the broad direction of the governments have been the same. There has been, there is and there will be considerable continuity in the economic policies," he told a gathering of Indian community at a reception hosted in his honour by the Indian Ambassador Shymala Cowsik late on Sunday night.

Despite the competitive politics in India where political parties emphasise differences, there is a great deal of continuity in domestic and foreign policies. There have been change of governments in the last 13 years but the direction of the reforms that the Congress government initiated 13 years ago to open up the economy to enlist overseas investment has not changed, he said. Manmohan Singh said the target of 6 to 8 per cent annual economic growth was an ambition that could not "be called unattainable but eminently achievable". But, he said, for this the country needs a lot more investment and India "will never become an international liability".

"We will take hard decisions that will make India a great power. It will be taken domestically. I see a increasing role for the Indian community and for overseas community to tap the tremendous opportunities available in the country," he said outlining agro-processing, manufacturing, services and pharmaceuticals as the sectors having the potential.

Recalling the strengths of India as an ancient civilisation and the fact that Indians had migrated to various parts of the globe centuries ago, Singh said the country was today one of the fastest growing economies of the world.

"It is not the end of the world. It is a new beginning of the journey we began in 1994. We have covered many milestones. It will take sometime for us to soften the rough edges of poverty that large numbers of our people live in. We will overcome. We shall prevail," he said.

Prime Minister said the relationship between India and the people of Indian origin in other parts of the world was "just not commercial or economic alone but emotional which we must preserve and develop."

"We will create enough climate for you whether you come to India as traders, investors or simply as tourists," he said adding in recent years India has emerged as a major centre for knowledge industry and it would help anyone who wanted to take benefit of the IT institutions.

"When I go to Silicon Valley I say whatever has happened there should be made possible in India. It is possible to reproduce it in India," he said. Noting that people from outside still felt disappointed about certain things in India, Singh said, "We will make it very investor friendly. There will be a new process in our country for investment."