Twists And Turns In The Journey Of The India

Twists and turns in the journey of the India-US nuclear deal in the last three and half years at a glance: * July 18, 2005: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President George W. Bush sign a joint statement in Washington on India-US civil nuclear cooperation. US approves civilian nuclear deal with India * March 2, 2006: India and the US "finalize" framework of the agreement during President Bush's visit to Delhi. India to separate its civil and nuclear facilities and put 14 civil facilities under International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards. In exchange, US agrees to work towards full civil nuclear cooperation with India. * Dec 9 , 2006: Both houses of US Congress approve the Henry J. Hyde US-India Peaceful Atomic Energy Cooperation Act of 2006. Better known as the Hyde Act, it grants the US administration a waiver from Section 123 of the Atomic Energy Act to resume nuclear commerce with India. * Dec 18, 2006: Bush signs the enabling legislation permitting full civilian nuclear cooperation with India into law. * July 27, 2007: India and the US announce the finalization of bilateral civil nuclear cooperation agreement, also called the 123 agreement. * October 2007: The deal runs into problems after the Indian government's Left allies attack it as being against the country's interests and compromising its sovereignty. * November 2007-June 2008: India's ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and its Left allies set up a joint panel and agree to allow the government to carry on negotiations with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on an India-specific safeguards agreement. * May 2008: India finalizes the text of the safeguards agreement with IAEA and indicates it will sign it. * June 25, 2008: The Left parties give an ultimatum to withdraw support if the government goes ahead with signing the safeguards agreement with IAEA. * July 7, 2008: Manmohan Singh leaves for Japan to attend the G8 summit and midair he tells accompanying mediapersons that the government was planning to go ahead with the IAEA pact. * July 9, 2008: The Left parties withdraw support to the government and call for a vote of confidence. * July 22, 2008: The UPA government wins the trust vote in parliament.

* Aug 1 , 2008 - IAEA governors approve India's nuclear inspections plan. * Sep 6, 2008: The 45-member Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) grants waiver to India opening the doors to global nuclear commerce for New Delhi after three decades. * Sep 10, 2008: President Bush notifies Congress to take up the India-US nuclear deal and give it the approval. * Sep 23, 2008: The US Senate Foreign Relations Committee approves the agreement but its new provisions stating that the deal will be subject to the Hyde Act create some uncertainty. * Sep 2 5, 2008: Manmohan Singh meets Bush in Washington. Bush tells him the administration is working hard to get the 123 agreement approved by the US Congress. * Sep 2 6 , 2008: US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Howard Berman introduces the approval resolution to 123 agreement but with similar provisions as those in the Senate. * Sep 27, 2008: House of Representatives passes the 123 agreement for civil nuclear cooperation between India and the US by a margin of 298-117. * Oct 1, 2008: Senate passes the approval bill 86-13. * Oct 4, 2008: US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice comes to India to sign the 123 agreement. The deal is not signed due to procedural reasons. *Oct 8, 2008: Bush signs the enabling legislation - "H.R. 7081, the United States-India Nuclear Cooperation Approval and Nonproliferation Enhancement Act" - at a White House ceremony. *Oct 10, 2008: External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Rice ink the 123 pact in Washington.