WASHINGTON, March 13: There will be a three-fold increase in India’s nuclear capacity by 2015 while New Delhi plans to import eight nuclear reactors by 2012, says US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

In an article published in the Washington Post on Monday, Ms Rice said that the shift from conventional to nuclear energy would reduce India’s projected annual carbon dioxide emission by more than 170 million tons, about the current total emissions of the Netherlands.

This, she said, would only be possible because the nuclear deal President Bush signed in New Delhi two weeks ago will enable India to decrease its reliance on fossil fuels that pollute the atmosphere.

The deal, Ms Rice said, would also be good for American jobs because it opens the door to civilian nuclear trade and cooperation between the two countries. “If US companies win just two of those (eight) reactor contracts, it will mean thousands of new jobs for American workers,” she added.

Ms Rice’s piece in a newspaper is part of the Bush administration’s campaign to win congressional endorsement for the Indo-US nuclear deal.

In her piece, Ms Rice passionately appeals to the lawmakers to endorse the deal because, she said: “This is an opportunity that should not be missed.”

“Looking back decades from now, we will recognize this moment as the time when America invested the strategic capital needed to recast its relationship with India,” argued Ms Rice.

Confirming media reports that the Bush administration is “consulting extensively” with Congress as it seeks to amend the laws needed to implement the agreement, Ms Rice said: “A thriving, democratic India will be a pillar of Asia’s progress, shaping its development for decades.”