India ready to join gas line project: Iranian diplomat

In the wake of recent positive development between Pakistan and India on political front, New Delhi has indicated that it is ready to join gas pipeline project to carry gas from Iran to India through Pakistan.
At an earlier stage when the idea of laying down tripartite gas pipeline was conceived, India had shown keen interest to become a partner. However it changed the stance when tensions arose between Islamabad and New Delhi after military stand-off at border in 2001.
Since then, India has pondered on various options such as laying down a pipeline under deep sea, basically to bypass Pakistan, but it never worked out to New Delhi's expectations.
An Iranian diplomat told a group of newsmen here on Tuesday that the Indian government has indicated to join the gas pipeline project, which is a good omen. He said the feasibility for the project has been completed and now it is ready for final go ahead.
The Iranian diplomat said "The project of gas pipeline is a reality now and it only needed a signal from the respective governments for a go-ahead, which was not far away now".
It may be recalled that the gas pipeline project was also discussed by the Pakistani and Indian leadership during their sideline meetings in recently concluded Saarc summit, and the two sides had agreed to push the idea forward to make it a reality.
Pakistan has already expressed its desire that India should join the tripartite gas pipeline project.
Islamabad believes that India's inclusion in the project would benefit it in two ways - one, it would get roughly $ 700 million as (annual) royalty, and the second, the project's cost would decrease but at the same time its viability in commercial terms would increase.
It may be added the Asian Development Bank, which is the moving spirit behind the idea of tripartite gas pipeline, is also making all out efforts to convince decision makers in New Delhi that India's participation in the project would benefit all its partners.
Iran-Pak-India gas pipeline would cost $ 3 billion. The international donor agencies have already consented to fund the project as it meets all their requirements.
India's inclusion in the project would make it more attractive for the donors who always advocated Indian participation, with the feelings that it would broaden the market for the project.