Opinion - Letters to the Editor   

India-U.S. agreement

The reports that have appeared in The Hindu on the subject of nuclear cooperation with the U.S. reflect high integrity and forthrightness, particularly in the face of the barrage of `spin' in the electronic and print media. Is it surprising that lobbies in New Delhi and Washington have steered India up the garden path, without heeding the advice of the scientific community? The commitments made by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh have put a question mark on the future of both our civilian and military nuclear programmes.

Admiral (retd.) Vishnu Bhagwat,
Mumbai

Just before leaving for the U.S., Dr. Singh announced nonchalantly that India was not for sale. Once in the U.S. he signed a nuclear energy agreement committing our civilian nuclear facilities to IAEA safeguards. And by doing so, he has handed over a duplicate key of all the civilian nuclear facilities to an external agency.

B. Madhava Murthy,
Hyderabad

As pointed out in the article "Nuclear bargain may prove costly in long run" (July 20), the IAEA safeguards and inspections at civilian plants will hamper our nuclear energy programme. It is baffling how the Government conceded such a bargain.

K.N. Raj Kumar,
Coimbatore

Dr. Singh's statement "India not for sale" should be rewritten as "India's nuclear facilities alone for sale."

Suresh K. Jariwala,
Tirupati, A.P.

The reception accorded to Dr. Singh in Washington had nothing to do with India's economic or technological progress. It was the result of the U.S.' understanding that Dr. Singh was ready to sign the agreement which is a virtual surrender of our nuclear facilities. If such an agreement had not been in the pipeline, the spectacle would have been different, if the past — particularly the Richard Nixon-Indira Gandhi encounter — is anything to go by.

A. Ananthakrishnan,
Chennai

Nothing can be more disappointing than the news that India has agreed to open its nuclear installations for inspection. It will harm our nuclear R&D. The apprehensions expressed by the scientific community are well founded.

Vikram Kumar,
New Delhi

The nuclear energy agreement has come at the right time. India has not been able to keep pace with the development in the field of nuclear technology for power generation because of the various hurdles placed by the nuclear powers. The bogey of proliferation has been raised to scuttle any Indian move to get high-end technology. Finally the West, particularly the U.S., seems to have taken note of India's growing stature as a responsible nuclear power.

Abhishek Mishra,
New Delhi

George W. Bush's offer of full civilian nuclear energy cooperation with India, if approved by the U.S. Congress, will be the greatest achievement of Dr. Singh.

R. Thirunarayanan,
Chennai

The deal has come at a time when our national security has become a matter of concern, in the context of nuclear proliferation by Pakistan. We must not lose sight of the fact that China has started improving relations with Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, besides having an all-weather friendship with Pakistan. India's improved strategic relations with America could not have come at a better time.

V.P. Damodar,
Pune

Dr. Singh deserves all praise for his historic speech and presentation of India's point of view on various matters in his address to the U.S. Congress. His categorical assertion that terrorism cannot be fought selectively and his presentation of the case for India's inclusion as a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council were notable. The nuclear energy agreement and President Bush's endorsement of the sanctity of the LoC are a victory for Indian diplomacy.

C.A.C. Murugappan,
Kothamangalam, T.N.

Dr. Singh sounded the alarm bells for the world to wake up to the real threat of jihadi terror when he said India and the U.S. should make common cause against terrorism. It is Pakistan and not Iraq that must be the focus of attention for the U.S. and its allied forces.

P.V. Raman,
Chennai

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