NEW DELHI, MARCH 18: India today applauded the formal US removal of 51 companies from the long list of entities which had been banned following the Pokharan tests, on the eve of President Clinton's visit to India, saying that this was a ``small, but sure step'' for improvement in Indo-US relations.India's Ambassador to the US, Naresh Chandra, told The Indian Express that the formal removal of the 51 entities, which include the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research and the Saha Institute, had far-reaching implications.``Apart from this notification, the US has also told us that sanctions on the remaining companies will shift from a presumption of denial to one of approval,'' Chandra said.Arguing that this attitudinal shift was significant, Chandra explained that in practice this meant that unless specific dual-use applications are involved, most Indian companies which still remained under the banned Entities List (about 160) will be able to do business with the US.Since this attitudinal shift would, in fact, cover most of the banned companies that continue to figure in the list today, the sense in the capital is that the US has taken this ``positive step'' to enhance the positive mood the day before Clinton lands in India.Asked about the statements by Albright and Berger, Chandra pointed out that the US, while stressing that Lahore should be used as the restarting point for a dialogue, was also calling for ``creating conditions'' to return to that dialogue. That implied an understanding of the Indian view, which is that cross-border terrorism must cease before both countries can begin talking again.Highly-placed sources in the Ministry of External Affairs pointed out that even after Kargil, New Delhi would not shy away from a dialogue with Pakistan. ``For 50 years, the onus of dialogue has been on India; now we are saying, `let's stop for a moment and see where this dialogue has led us in the past'. Let us first create the conditions for a dialogue,'' the sources said.The formal lifting of the ban also underlines Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha's statement that the impact of the sanctions has been minimal on the Indian economy. US Ambassador to India Richard Celeste confirmed this view at a Press conference today, saying that Sinha's assessment was ``accurate.''New Delhi also warmly welcomed the recent remarks by the US national Security Adviser, Samuel Berger, in Washington which had put the ``responsibility'' for Kargil on Pakistan and pointed out that both India and Pakistan could use Lahore as the point from where to ``restart'' their dialogue.In the light of the statement by US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright earlier this week calling for a ``freezing of borders'' between India and Pakistan, Berger's stress on the Lahore process, on the eve of Clinton's arrival in India, is being seen as a ``positive shift-in-the-making'' towards New Delhi.
