New Delhi/Vienna: India issued a suo moto statement on Friday in a bid to allay fears amongst some NSG countries still holding out against granting an exemption to India from the normal rules of nuclear trade that govern this cartel.

''India is committed to concluding the Fissile Material Cut off Treaty (FMOT),'' Indian foreign minister Pranab Mukherjee said. ''India won't be a source of proliferation of nuclear material,'' the foreign minister added.

Mukherjee reaffirmed the country's commitment to its moratorium on nuclear testing as well as its policy of no-first-use of nuclear weapons.

Meanwhile, with Day 2 of the meet is set to dawn, senior Indian officials apparently met representatives of the few so-called ''sceptic'' countries of the 45-member grouping to assuage fears.

These meetings have taken place even as other members of the cartel have expressed their optimism that a consensus would indeed be achieved that would end the country's 34-year long nuclear isolation. "We are close to a consensus. There may be a statement for the press today," a western diplomat, was quoted as saying at the end of the first day of proceedings.

A number of countries like New Zealand, Austria, Norway, Ireland, The Netherlands and Switzerland have expressed their dissatisfaction with the draft US proposals and have succeeded in stalling consensus at the NSG in the first round of meeting held on 21-22 August. These 'holdout' countries have held up further movement on the proposals on the first day of this round of meeting at Vienna as well and threaten to take matters to a possible third round later this month.

This could effectively jeopardise the deal as there would not be enough time left for the US Congress to give the proposal due consideration.

Meanwhile, a leading Washington-based pro-NPT activist, Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association, an organisation currently at the forefront of a multi-nation crusade to spike the Indo-US nuclear deal, has claimed that only "minor" progress was made at the end of the first day of the Nuclear Suppliers Group meeting to consider a waiver for India.

"Sources tell me that there was some progress on minor points, but serious differences remain on fundamental issues," Kimball said.

According to Kimball, several "responsible" NSG states are holding out for the inclusion of conditions that parallel US law and policy, including no transfers of enrichment, reprocessing or heavy water production technology and termination of nuclear trade if India should resume nuclear weapons testing.

As for the US, it appears to have taken this second round of meeting a little more seriously than the last time by sending undersecretary of state William Burns, the third highest ranking officer in the State Department, to head the US delegation.

For the record, Burns has expressed his optimism over the outcome. "I believe we are making steady progress in this process and we will continue to make progress," he had said at the end of the first round.

India does not have an official presence at the meet as it is not a member of the NSG cartel.