New Delhi: India could attract about two billion dollars worth investment in telecom equipment manufacturing in the next two years.

As of now, the total FDI in telecom manufacturing is about Rs 1,000 crore, which is expected to touch two billion dollars or Rs 9,000 crore over the next three years," Telecom Minister Dayanidhi Maran told sources.

Telecom equipment manufacturing revenue is also expected to double in the next one year from the current about Rs 17,000 crore to Rs 35,000 crore, Maran said.

Global majors are exploring India for production of switches, gearbox, handsets and other wireless equipment.

Rising demand for a wide range of telecom equipment, particularly in the area of mobile telecommunication, has provided excellent opportunities to domestic and foreign investors in the manufacturing sector, he said.

India, adding up to six million wireless subscribers a month and having recently surpassed China, promises to be a market with huge demand potential, a fact global telecom majors could barely miss.

Maran said a proposal for setting up Telecom Equipment and Services Export Promotion Council and Telecom Testing and Security Certification Centre (TETC) is also in the pipeline.

A large number of companies like Alcatel and Cisco have also shown interest in setting up their R&D centers in India. With above initiatives, India is expected to be a manufacturing hub for the telecom equipment. Cisco recently announced that it would undertake a pilot of its IP phone manufacturing in India.