A declaration on civil nuclear cooperation between India and Britain appears to be on the anvil when commerce minister Anand Sharma visits London next month.This was indicated by Lord Peter Mandelson, British secretary of state for business, innovation and skills. Mandelson was said to be disappointed that such an agreement was not concluded during his visit to Delhi last month. According to a source at the Indian High Commission here, India objected to a non-proliferation clause in the draft submitted by the UK.
However, even if the mentioned declaration is signed next month, this cannot become operational until New Delhi changes its policy of restricting nuclear collaboration to public sector entities. Most potential British suppliers of technology for generation of nuclear energy are in the private sector.
The same hurdle is, reportedly, holding up implementation of contracts with US companies. In contrast, such firms in France and Russia are generally government owned.