(11 December 2006 7:30 pm)

MUMBAI: India Telecom 2006, the biggest showcase of the telecom industry, will be inaugurated by President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam on 14 December at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.

Communications and information technology minister Dayanidhi Maran will deliver the keynote address at the inaugural session.

Over 200 companies are participating is the international exhibition and conference. In the exhibition the Indian telecom industry will be represented by companies like Bharti Airtel Limited, BSNL, C-DOT, Hutchison Essar Mobile Services Ltd, COAI, Qualcomm India Pvt Ltd. Reliance Communication Ltd. Etc.Among the international participants there will be companies from Canada, China, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Italy while Taiwan, Korea and US companies will be seen in independent pavilions.

A highlight of India Telecom 2006 will be the CEO’s Roundtable with Maran. It will be an interactive session of all the telecom CEO’s with the minister. Trai chairman Nripendra Misra and DoT secretary DS Mathur will also address the session. Among the participants at the Roundtable will be ADAG chairman Anil Ambani, Bharti Enterprises CMD Sunil Bharti Mittal, Infosys CEO Nandan Nilekani, Essar Group chairman Shashi Ruia, BSNL CMD AK Sinha, MTNL CMD RSP Sinha and IDEA Cellular MD Sanjeev Aga.

Concurrent to the exhibition would be technical seminars and conferences. The objective of the summit is to discuss new growth drivers that are revolutionizing the telecom sector in India and around the world. It would also focus on showcasing the huge potential that India holds in this sector for inviting investments.

The first session on 15 December would be on Regulatory and Policy Imperatives. Misra will chair the session, while the theme address would be delivered by Ambassador David A Gross, US Co-ordinator for international communication and information policy, US department of state. Global Mobile Suppliers Association president Alan Hadden will also address the session.