Indian PM: Atomic energy key to country’s future

INDIA: India’s prime minister sought to step up pressure on opponents of a nuclear energy deal with the United States on Monday as his government faced its worst crisis since taking power three years ago.

Speaking in New Delhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh made no direct reference to the much-touted - and increasingly maligned - deal. But his message in support of the pact was clear.

“When we aim for a 10 percent (economic) growth rate, we must recognize the critical importance of energy security,” Singh said, arguing that India must find cheaper alternatives to oil and gas imports, which are used to fuel two-thirds of the country’s energy supply.

“Our government is committed to the development of nuclear energy,” he added in a speech.

Both Singh and U.S. President George W. Bush have repeatedly sold the deal to skeptics in both countries as a way to help energy-starved India get the power needed to sustain its economic boom and wean itself from increasingly expensive oil and gas imports.

But it’s an argument that’s so far proven unable to sway Indian critics, especially Singh’s communist political allies, who are key to the administration’s survival but deeply opposed to the pact - a fact the reiterated after meeting Monday.

Many critics argue the deal could undermine India’s nuclear cherished nuclear weapons program and lead to too much U.S. influence over India’s foreign affairs. Some simply oppose closer ties to the United States.

Few here believe the government will collapse over the issue. But analysts say the communists’ opposition has considerably weakened Singh’s government, raising serious doubts over whether it will be able to forge closer ties to the United States and enact a series of economic reforms, such as loosening the country’s restrictive labor laws and further liberalizing its financial sector.

New Delhi, Tuesday, AP