RS adjourned till noon over Indo-US nuclear deal

New Delhi, Aug 31 (UNI) The Rajya Sabha was adjourned till 1200 hrs today, a day after the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and Left parties agreed to form a committee for looking into objections to the Indo-US civil nuclear agreement.

As soon as the House assembled for Question Hour, agitated opposition leaders shouted slogans demanding formation of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC).

Chairman Hamid Ansari tried in vain to pacify them and was forced to adjourn the House till noon.

Though the Government's understanding of operationalisation of the 123 agreement is different from the Left's perception, both sides have found a workable middle ground.

''In view of the certain objections raised by the Left parties on the Indo-US bilateral agreement, it has been decided to constitute a committee to go into these issues,'' said a statement issued after the Left-UPA meet yesterday.

The committee will look into implication of the Hyde Act on the 123 agreement, self-reliance in the nuclear sector, the implication of nuclear agreement on foreign policy and security cooperation.

The committee will examine these issues and operationalisation of the deal and take into account the committee's findings.

The Government has clarified to the Left that it is not going ahead on talks with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) next month.

UNI