NEW DELHI, July 22: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s woes over a controversial gas pipeline project with Iran increased on Friday after a cabinet colleague and key allies distanced themselves from his critique of the multi-billion dollar idea. Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar said negotiations with Pakistan were on to make the Iran-Pakistan-India gas pipeline safe from all risks. Dr Singh had described the project in Washington as being fraught with risks.

“The whole of this exercise for a safe and secure world class project is taking required measures to mitigate the risks involved,” Mr Aiyar told reporters here.

Dr Singh had also expressed doubts if any international consortium of bankers would underwrite the project.

Mr Aiyar said the technical, financial, commercial and legal agreements of the pipeline would have safety and security dimensions worked into the project structure.

“Negotiations are on schedule that we had laid. We are working towards that,” he said.

Earlier this month, India and Pakistan decided to appoint separate financial consultants to work out a project structure for the much-delayed project to take off by early next year.

The prime minister’s Left Front allies, who shore up his United Progressive Alliance government, voiced apprehensions on Friday over the Indo-US agreement on nuclear energy.

“It is very unfortunate that the prime minister has made such remarks in Washington when it is well-known that the United States is opposed to the project,” said Mr Prakash Karat, general secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist).

“The prime minister should immediately clarify whether the commitment to the pipeline project has been diluted as a result of his visit to the United States,” Mr Karat said after an hour-long meeting of the four Left parties ahead of the monsoon session of parliament beginning Monday.

The Left parties have decided to have floor coordination with the government “as we are supporting the government from outside,” Mr Karat said.

Pakistani diplomats said privately they were surprised by Dr Singh’s apparent lack of enthusiasm for the project for which Islamabad has been resisting American pressure to abort it.