March 13: India is “committed” to the nuclear deal with America, the country’s top diplomat in Washington told a seminar, days before a key panel meets back home to discuss the vexed agreement.

In Delhi, the government said it was working towards getting the guidelines of the Nuclear Suppliers Group changed so that India, not a signatory to the non-proliferation treaty, could begin nuclear trade with other countries.

“As far as the status of the civilian nuclear cooperation agreement is concerned... I would like to say clearly and categorically that the government is committed to that,” ambassador Ronen Sen told a gathering at George Washington University.

He added that Delhi was “bound” by the bilateral 123 Agreement, which lays out the nuts and bolts of the nuclear cooperation.

The comments came four days before the Centre’s communist allies were to be handed a draft of the agreed text with the IAEA at a meeting of the UPA-Left panel on the deal.

Sen emphasised that neither Delhi nor Washington would want to “lecture” the other on what the other should or shouldn’t do. “…We are a democracy and there are certain processes which have to be over…. And we have to take subsequent steps from international forums,” he said, alluding to the safeguards agreement with atomic watchdog IAEA and an exemption from the NSG, both crucial for activating the deal.

In Delhi, Prithviraj Chavan, minister of state in the Prime Minister’s Office, said India was “working” to get a “clean” NSG waiver. “We are working towards getting the NSG to alter its guidelines,” Chavan told the Rajya Sabha during Question Hour.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was present in the House.

Chavan’s statement came after the BJP’s Sushma Swaraj asked whether Australia had threatened to stop supply of uranium if India tested a nuclear weapon. “We have never got uranium from Australia,” Chavan replied.

When Swaraj persisted with her query, Chavan said when there had never been any supply of uranium, where was the “question of stopping”?