"There aren't that many days left where Congress is going to be in session," said spokeswoman Dana Perino. "If their legislature lets it move forward then we can do the same here and then we'll be able to get this wrapped up."

She spoke shortly after embattled Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh survived a chaotic parliamentary confidence vote sought by foes of the US-India nuclear deal, clearing the way for him to forge ahead with the accord.

"We look forward to continuing to work with Prime Minister Singh's government on strengthening our strategic partnership with India and working on a number of important bilateral issues including a US India civil nuclear agreement," said US National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe.

The result was seen as giving the government the green light to move forward with the pact with Washington, which was designed to bring India into the global loop of nuclear commerce after decades of international isolation.

"We think that this idea of a US-India civil nuclear arrangement is a good one for everybody. It's good for India because it would help provide them a source for energy that they need, one that is non-polluting and one that doesn't emit greenhouse gas emissions," said Perino.

At the US State Department, spokesman Gonzalo Gallegos said Washington had been reaching out to some of the members of the board of the UN nuclear watchdog agency ahead of an August 1 meeting on the 2005 atomic agreement.

The deal cannot proceed unless India signs a so-called Safeguards Agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), opening up key civilian nuclear reactors to UN inspections.

In addition, India must obtain a waiver from the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), a group of 45 states that export nuclear fuel and technology whose rules ban trade with non-NPT states -- all before the US Congress votes.

Some US lawmakers oppose the deal on grounds that it could trigger a regional arms race, while others have warned that time is running out for the US Congress, caught up in election-year fever, to ratify the pact.

Other critics say the deal undermines curbs on the global spread of nuclear know-how by embracing India, which has not signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), built its atomic arsenal in secret, and tested a bomb in 1974.

The deal allows India to be treated as a special case on condition it separates its civil and military programs and allows some UN inspections.

Indian foes of the agreement say the requisite UN inspections would limit India's ability to develop its weapons program and deter its main regional rival Pakistan.

For India's left-wingers, communists and Hindu nationalists, the Indo-US accord is little more than a sell-out to an old foe and a betrayal of traditional Cold War ally Russia.

Also down the drain, they argue, is India's status as a figurehead of the Non-Aligned Movement and champion of the developing world.

Singh argues the nuclear pact is crucial for energy security and to sustain high economic growth. The country currently imports more than 70 percent of its energy needs, and needs an overhaul of its decrepit nuclear energy sector.

India's infrastructure is creaking under the strain of a booming and increasingly urbanized population. Blackouts are frequent in major cities, and even small family-owned businesses have to fork out large sums of money for generators and other power back-ups.

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