Gutierrez met top Indian officials at the start of his first-ever trip here and was scheduled to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singn for talks on Wednesday.

"More needs to be done to open India's markets ... there are some sectors such as retail, banking, financial services and telecommunications where obstacles remain," Gutierrez told Indian business leaders.

"Needless bureaucratic hurdles, protectionist policies or caps on foreign ownership, hamstring businesses that wish to contribute to this burgeoning market and bring goods, services and increases options to Indian consumers," he added.

India must "fight back the temptation to put on the brakes and put up walls -- continued economic success will only result from transparency and openness -- not protectionism and isolationism," he said.

Gutierrez's call came a week after the chief of India's ruling Congress party voiced fears that the entry of global firms into the country's retail sector could down the shutters on millions of mom-and-pop stores.

The government is also under pressure from its communist allies which prop it up in parliament to go slow on reforms, arguing that India's uncounted millions living below a poverty line will get swamped in an open economy.

The United States is India's largest trading partner and two-way trade totalled 29 billion dollars to the end of November, according to the latest figures available.

In December, Gutierrez's, deputy, Franklin Lavin, led the biggest-ever US trade team to India, signalling Washington's desire to find a toehold in the surging economy fuelled by a 300-million-strong affluent middle class.

The US commerce secretary said one of the primary aims of his trip to India was also to seek New Delhi's backing in making the moribund Doha Round of World Trade Organisation talks a success.

"India has tremendous opportunity to play an active role in pushing these talks forward and we are willing to make difficult choices," Gutierrez said.