The All India Football Federation (AIFF) just did not take the World Cup seriously, considering the Olympics to be the ultimate goal, they had no idea about the World Cup then. The Olympics was everything. There was nothing bigger.

India surprised the world with their performance in the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, England. The Indian national football team, with every player playing without footwear (some players played in socks while most played barefoot), lost to France in the first round by the razor thin margin of 2-1 (and actually were tied with France at 1 all 70 minutes into the match) . This match already drew a great deal of attention as the 1948 Summer Olympics was the first time that India was performing in an international tournament as an independent nation (after gaining their independence from Great Britain). However, the fact that the Indian team did all of this in bare feet drew the most attention.

More Info: latimesblogs.latimes.com