And after dismissing the name as a figment of media creation and preferring to code name the car, "Mint" the Tatas have decided to stick to the original name, Indica, at the end of the day.

The small car to be manufactured by Tata group flagship Telco will carry the name "Tata Indica", stated the company in a press statement issued on Monday.

According to the Tata Services press release, "Indica" was the original name given to the car during the initial conceptualisation of the project and drew its genesis from the phrase "India's car". "It appropriately captures the passion of Telco's engineers to offer the country a world-class product which can be benchmarked against the best in its class," saidthe release.

The car will be the fulfilment of Ratan Tata's dream and he is taking care of every minute detail to ensure that his vision comes true. Tata Indica, which is expected to give car giant Maruti Udyog a run for its money, is slated to be launched before the end of the current year. It was the cynosure of all eyes at this year's auto expo, where it was unveiled to the general public. The Telco stall was jam-packed and the public went into raptures, while potential competitors stared in awe.

The Indica will be powered by a 1,400cc engine and will come in both petrol and diesel versions. While the petrol version is expected to be priced at around Rs 3 lakh, a little more than the Maruti 800, the diesel Indica will cost about Rs 4 lakh (on-road prices in Mumbai).

The Tata small car will make its debut after the Hyundai Santro (fitted with a 999cc engine) and Daewoo Maitz (with a 796cc engine). What is, however, expected to give Indica an edge over its rivals is the fact that it will be availablein both petrol and diesel versions, while the Hyundai Santro and Daewoo Maitz will have only petrol versions.

The tilt towards can be attributed to the fact that it is cheaper than petrol. This has been reflected in the mid-size car segment where almost every manufacturer has introduced a diesel option right from Ford Escort and Mitsubishi Lancer to the Opel Astra. Even Maruti has kicked off a diesalisation process for a select vehicle range.

The Indica looks sleek and resembles Fiat's world car, Palio, which is expected to hit India by the end of 1999. In fact, both the Indica as well as the Palio have been the creations of the same Italian designing company.

It is understood that Telco will break even at a production level of 60,000 cars per annum and the company is investing an estimated Rs 1,700 crore in this project.

The Tatas have also roped in a former Chrysler executive to help out in the small car project. Also, Telco is expected to adopt a unique marketing approach for Indica as the companyis aware that it is essentially a commercial-vehicle maker. Telco has already appointed Ulka to handle Indica's advertising campaign, which is expected to start shortly.