Indian organisation hails nuclear agreement

Washington, July 24: The US-India Political Action Committee (USINPAC) has hailed the agreement reached between the US and Indian officials over the nuclear deal as a historic milestone in the relations of the two countries.

''Universally regarded as one of the most important pacts of the 21st century, the US-India Civil Nuclear Agreement lays the foundation stone for India's energy self-reliance and opens avenues for American businesses to invest in the country's booming economy,'' said the USINPAC, a Washington-based bipartisan organization, in a statement here yesterday.

The USINPAC also congratulated Ms Pratibha Patil on her election as India's first woman President.

Its Chairman Sanjay Puri said, the election of Ms Patil was an important milestone in Indian politics. It already had a woman Prime Minister Ms Indira Gandhi in the 1970s and the 1980s, and with Ms Patil's ascendancy to the highest office in India, ''the nation has shown that gender issues do not play any role in the election of deserving candidates.''

UNI