NEW DELHI, Nov 11: India has decided to reduce its troops in Jammu and Kashmir this winter, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced on Thursday, but gave no details.

The announcement got a mixed reaction from Kashmiri leaders fighting New Delhi's rule in the Himalayan region, the moderates seeking a better human rights discipline from the army as the real clincher, and the hardliners insisting that the move was eyewash anyway.

In a statement ahead of his first tour of the disputed region from Wednesday, Dr Singh said: "During the past several months, the Indian Army and other security forces deployed in the state of Jammu and Kashmir have achieved success in bringing about an improvement in the security situation in the state.

"Effective counter-infiltration measures and mobilizing the support of the people in the war against terrorism have led to a visible improvement in the situation. This is reflected in the increased tempo of economic activity, continuing increase in tourist arrivals, and a general sense of security among the people.

"In recognition of the improvement in the situation in the state, the government has decided to reduce the deployment of troops this winter," Dr Singh said.

He clarified that India could not afford to relax its vigil in Jammu and Kashmir. "We are aware that infiltration attempts from across the border and the LoC continue and the infrastructure of terrorism in the shape of training camps and launching bases remain intact."

Dr Singh said the decision to reduce the deployment of troops would be kept under constant review. "If the levels of infiltration and terrorist violence increase, more troops as necessary will be redeployed," he said.

Kashmir's spiritual leader Mirwaiz Maulvi Umar Farooq declined to comment on the move but said he would give his reaction to Dr Singh's announcement at the Friday prayers in Srinagar.

Former chairman of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference Maulvi Abbas Ansari welcomed the move to reduce Indian troops but said an equally important measure would be to curb human rights abuses by the army in Jammu and Kashmir.

"We would like to see the ordinary Kashmiri less terrified of the Indian army," Maulvi Abas said.

On the other hand, rejecting the Indian proposal as eyewash, hardline Kashmiri leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani said a brief troop withdrawal would be meaningless if all the troops, one million according to his estimates, were not dispatched to the barracks.