The Indica has been described in a press release as the country's first indigenously-designed, developed and manufactured passenger car and the most contemporary in terms of style features and performance.

The ex-showroom price in Delhi of the standard petrol car is Rs 2.59 lakh, Rs 2.85 lakh for standard diesel, Rs 2.95 lakh for air-conditioned diesel, while deluxe diesel will cost Rs 3.90 lakh.

Presenting the most eagerly-awaited car, Telco chairman Ratan Tata said: "We started the project with a commitment to develop a car for the Indian market that could be benchmarked against the world's best in terms of features, looks and performance - and yet offers a great value proposition. A car designed for the country rather than one adapted forIndia. Today, that vision is becoming a reality."

Bookings for a maximum of 10,000 cars, which were initially planned to commence from January 14 are rescheduled to begin on January 17 because of public holidays. The cars will start appearing in showrooms across the country from December 31 and will be available for test drives and viewing ahead of the booking dates. All Indica dealerships will provide innovative retail schemes through Tata Finance and ANZ Grindlays - the preferred financiers for the car. The bookings will remain open till January 23 but will close earlier once the 10,000 figure is reached.

The Tata Indica comes with an 18-month, unlimited mileage warranty, a first for a car in its class. It is available in eight colours - cezari red, merina blue, tropicana green and pearl silver in metallic shades and in mint white, sparkle red, riviera blue and forest green in solid shades.

Designed and conceptualised as a comfortable and safe car for city and long-distance travel, the car isengineered to meet international standards of quality and also to stand up to the rigours of Indian roads and weather conditions.