Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee adjourned the House till 11 am on Tuesday after it became impossible to conduct any business due to the ruckus that the National Democratic Alliance made, demanding a discussion on the Indo-US nuclear deal under Article 184.

Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh [Images] in his eight-page statement defended the Indo-US nuclear deal.

He claimed that the government had kept the Parliament fully in the picture at various stages of our negotiations with the United States. We have never shied away from a full discussion in Parliament on this important issue," Dr Singh said while beginning his strong defence of the treaty.

He disclosed how his government had briefed many of the political parties, including the main opposition Bhartiya Janata Party, represented in Parliament on the details of the agreement.

"It is an agreement between two states possessing advance nuclear technologies, both parties having the same benefits and advantages," he said.

"I had given Parliament my assurance that the government will make every effort so that the vision of the Joint statements of July 2005 and March 2006 become living reality. I believe that we had redeemed that pledge. In concluding this agreement, we have ensured that the autonomy of our strategic programme is fully maintained, and that Dr Homi Bhabha's long term vision remains our guiding principle," he said.

Further details soon.