Oppn finds N-deal unfair

India, US say deal's done, NSA says no mention on nuke tests in text.

India and the United States today officially announced they had completed negotiations on the bilateral text on civil nuclear cooperation, but Opposition parties raised doubts on the extent to which the deal curtailed India's strategic autonomy.

Doubts were raised on the movement of personnel from one nuclear facility to another, on whether India was a Nuclear Weapons State (This will allow India more leverage with the International Atomic Energy Agency), and conflict of laws, that is, the implications of the Hyde Act on the the 123 Agreement if India conducted more nuclear tests.

These doubts were raised during a meeting the BJP had Prime Minister Manmohan Singh yesterday.

At a press conference addressed by Foreign Secretary SS Menon, National Security Advisor MK Narayanan and chief of the Atomic Energy Commission(AEC), Anil Kakodkar, India called for a new consensus on proliferation and said what had been negotiated with the US was an agreement for peaceful nuclear energy.

Describing the text as "excellent, because I don't want to be presumptuous," Narayanan said there was a certain amount of give and take in every negotiation.

"We could have had the best text. What we have is a deal that meets legal requirements and laws that govern other countries. There are no conditionalities in the text," Narayanan said.

"There is no reference to nuclear tests by India. It refers only to civil nuclear cooperation," he said.

However, a very slight hesitation was evident in the tone of Kakodkar, who had earlier objected to the deal saying it would curtail India's strategic nuclear programme.

"We are karmayogis... I can have a huge wishlist. But the point is what did we set out to achieve and is the deal consistent with that? To this, the answer is yes," he said.

He added what he said earlier was the national position and what he was saying now was also the national position.

Narayanan said the agreement assured not just reactor and fuel support but also permitted India to exploit the energy potential of spent fuel. Kakodkar said the text allowed India to carry out civil nuclear as well as strategic programmes.

On whether further tests would disturb the balance of power in the subcontinent, Narayanan said, "This agreement is for civil nuclear energy. If we need additional fuel for our strategic stockpile, we know how to do it. But this (agreement) is for a civil nuclear programme, not an excuse to enhance strategic capability". He said there were assurances of uninterrupted fuel supplies in the deal.

On future plans, Menon said India would work to gain an unqualified exemption from the Nuclear Suppliers' Group, which governs the supply of uranium.

On how the Hyde Act would impact India if it conducted nuclear tests, Narayanan said the negotiators of both the countries understood the limit of possibilities and how far to go to get the best deal.

"We have got a very good deal, which we believe should meet individual legal requirements of both the countries," said Narayanan

The government had told the Opposition leaders that if India was to conduct a nuclear test, it would have to give a six-month notice to get out of the agreement and another six months to arrange fuel supplies.

According to the BJP leaders, the government was not able to answer if India had secured full enrichment as part of the deal. This is important as it marks the difference between civil and military uses.

"We sensed fudging on several key issues. We will have to study the text of the agreement" a senior BJP leader said.