Monday, May 9 2005 09:06 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

On board PM's special aircraft: With India and Pakistan scheduled to hold talks later this month on the crucial Siachen issue, New Delhi yesterday (May 8, 2005) said it was very keen to settle it since maintaining troops on the glacier was a costly proposition for both countries.

Both Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf wanted the process to be reinvigorated and have asked their Defence Secretaries to take "liberal" views on the issue, officials accompanying the Prime Minister to Moscow said.

They said the two leaders have instructed that the existing institutional mechanism should convene discussions immediately with a view to finding a mutually acceptable solution to the issue.

On Baglihar issue with Pakistan, the officials said India was very clear that it would not move any inch beyond Indus Water Treaty.

Asked if there was a letup in cross border terrorism, they said it was difficult to comment till the snow melts in the mountains of Jammu and Kashmir.

In reply to a question, they said militant outfit Lasheker-e-Toiba (LeT) was the creation of ISI.

They said the Pakistani intelligence agency was working in Bangladesh and was active in Nepal.