NEW DELHI, Feb 2 (UNI) With prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee criticising the US senate decision to restrict outsourcing, the US today said it was ready to resolve the issue with New Delhi "in a business-like manner without rancour" even as it asked India to further open up its market in the interest of a "win-win situation for both countries." Talking to a select group of journalists, US Charge D'Affaires Robert O'Blake said, "Free trade and open market should be a two-way street.
The best way is for India to continue to open its market so that jobs are created in the US." Welcoming the recent tariff, tax and investment liberalisation measures announced by finance minister Jaswant Singh, he said "the two countries also need to work together in the Doha round of WTO negotiations to identify ways to open new markets rather than close those are already open." India could help in this task by accelerating its programme of trade liberalisation, helping to build a positive momentum in the Doha round of talks and setting ambitious goals for new commitments, he added.
The US trade representative would be visiting India later this month to iron out differences between the two countries on trade negotiations, which derailed the WTO talks at Cancun in September last year.
Blake said the US was interested in investing in financial services, insurance, telecom and other such areas in India and wanted caps on foreign investments in these sectors to be lifted.
He, however, noted that these caps were now being lifted gradually.
He said he had already conveyed the Bush administration's views on the outsourcing issue to top Indian officials in recent days.
mr blake said president george w bush was according top priority to creation of jobs in the country.
Outsourcing was largely resulting in the jobs flowing out of the us.
The us favours free trade and open markets but the benefits of trade must be reciprocal, he added.
The us official highlighted the growing strategic partnership between the two countries, which was reinforced by the recent statements of prime minister vajpayee and president bush on the next steps in the bilateral partnership in the areas of high technology trade, civil nuclear and space cooperation and missile defence.
Mr blake noted that economic ties between the two countries were becoming stronger.
The us was india's largest trade partner and bilateral trade grew by about 13 per cent in 2003.
Observing that one of the marks of the strong bilateral relationship between india and the us was their ability to manage differences in a business-like manner without rancour, he said the discussions between them on iraq were a good example of this and outsourcing could be another.
Our differences on iraq did not disrupt the positive movement in our relationship...We both handled the issue with maturity.
He said the us companies were keen on outsourcing of jobs to countries like india because of certain advantages that accrue to them.
You have a well-educted workforce which is english-speaking.
Also, the wages here are lower, he said.
However, there was a perception in the us, britain and other countries now that jobs were flowing out to nations like india, which were less open to similar trade and opportunities, he added.
We will welcome robust commitment to trade and services within the wto by india...India has an opportunity to move forward in sectors like financial services, mr blake said.
BJP close to securing absolute majority: Venkaiah NEW DELHI, Feb 2 (UNI) Bharatiya Janata Party president M Venkaiah Naidu today said his party's chances of securing people's mandate on its own in the forthcoming Lok Sabha election had turned bright following favourable changes in many states and "I can say the party is closer to an absolute majority." Addressing party leaders from Uttar Pradesh, called to review the political situation in the state, Naidu said people made fun of him when he set the target of winning 300 seats for the BJP and two-third majority for the NDA.
With the changing political situation fast after victories in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh the situation was turning positive even in states the BJP was not expecting.
He said the responsibility of the country's biggest and most populous state of Uttar Pradesh was great because it also happened to be the home state of prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
"We expect hundred per cent support from UP," he told the BJP leaders.
Many surveys conducted in states like Haryana was `shockingly favourable' to the BJP, he remarked.
Ruling out any understanding with the Samajwadi Party in UP, he said the party led by chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav was a main rival along with its rival BSP for the BJP.
The Congress was nowhere in the race, he said.
The BJP will have to bring out the state from the dubious clutches of being a 'Bimaru' state.
He said the way Mulayam Singh had handled the situation in UP was very much distressing and the law and order was bad there.
Dacoity, looting and kidnapping incidents were happening every day and the chief minister was taking actions which was outrightly revengeful, he said.
Naidu who earlier met the core group of UP leaders along with general secretaries Pramod Mahajan and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said that the meeting decided to take the 'Atal Sandesh Yatra' to towns and villages of UP even before the notification for the Lok Sabha election was issued.
There will be eight regional rallies before the end of February, he said.
For the BJP victory in the coming elections was the sale target and this was possible if the party toned up its functioning and spoke in one voice.
"People want us to win and if we work unitedly victory is ours," he said.
Top BJP leaders including UP BJP chief Vinay Katiyar, senior BJP leader Kalraj Mishra, newly designated BJP spokesman and law minister Arun Jaitley were among those who attended the core group meeting.
Vajpayee making misleading statements: Rosaiah HYDERABAD, Feb 2 (UNI) The Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee today disputed the claims of prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee that the country had witnessed allround development with increase in expenditure on major irrigation projects and establishment of major industries.
At a press conference here, party spokesman K Rosaiah said it was during the Narasimha Rao regime that there was enormous surplus of foodgrains.
"Mr Vajpayee's statements are misleading," he added.
On the cooperative sector, he said elections were held last on July 26, 1995.
The state government had remained silent and it reflected its lack of faith in cooperative sector, Pak prisoners discharged from hospital ALWAR, RAJASTHAN, Feb 2 (UNI) Two Pakistani detainees on a hunger strike to press for their return home were discharged from a city hospital today after they ended their protest, police said.
The striking Pakistanis , Munir, 42, and Rizwan, 37 were admitted to the government hospital last Friday when their condition deteriorated.
They had been refusing food in hospital also, but relented and accepted milk and chappatis last night following counselling by doctors.
The two are part of a batch of seven Pakistanis detained at a police camp here following completion of their prison sentences.
In all, 13 Pakistanis had been lodged at the camp last September.
They were kept there, pending repatriation, following a directive from the centre in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling.
Six of the men were later repatriated while the others are yet to get the necessary clearances from the Pakistan government.
The Pakistanis had resorted to hunger strike to press for their release twice in the past also.
According to sources, the Pakistan government is displaying reluctance in identifying them, primarily because most of them were held on espionage charges.
