The world's second largest retail chain Carrefour is exploring a number of formats to establish a presence in the booming Indian market, reports The Economic Times . " India is an attractive market. We are definitely going to be here," said an official from Carrefour India .

Carrefour president Luc Vandevelde was in India last month on a low-key visit. Though company officials dismissed it as an internal meeting, industry sources think it could have been to check out the ground reality.

Carrefour India is believed to be exploring formats like the cash-and-carry and franchisee models to facilitate its entry. It has also been approached by various retail players in the country for a joint venture.

The cash-and-carry model is being followed by the German retailer Metro AG, which has set up two distribution centres in Bangalore, and will soon establish their presence in Hyderabad and Kolkata.

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