23 December 2004	Thursday	10 Ziqa'ad 1425

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NEW DELHI, Dec 22: Indian Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Wednesday there was no move to withdraw Indian troops from the Siachen glacier.

He told the Rajya Sabha that defence secretaries of India and Pakistan had held talks in New Delhi in August on the issue within the framework of the composite dialogue.

"During the meeting, modalities for disengagement and redeployment of troops were discussed. The two sides agreed to continue discussions," Mr Mukherjee said. He stressed, however, that the security situation was 'dynamic' and was therefore reviewed periodically.

"No compromise will be made on security related matters and plans are in place to cater for all possible operational contingencies," Mr Mukherjee said. He disclosed that the government had approved a programme for indigenous development of an Airborne Early Warning & Control System, adopting state-of-the-art technologies.

The programme is different from the earlier project on Air Surveillance Platform. India also proposes to upgrade its entire fleet of Russian-built T-72 tanks held by field formations of the army.

The up gradation would include installation of Auto Land Navigation System, new engines for upgrading mobility, up gradation of protection, Image Intensifier Night Sights, Thermal Imager Fire Control System/Thermal Imager Stand Alone System for upgrading of fire power.

These schemes are likely to be completed by 2008-2009. In January 2004, MiG signed a contract with India to sell 16 MiG-29K jet fighters for $500m, and another 30 jets will be sold in the future.