The press release quoted Planning Commission deputy chairman Jaswant Singh as saying, in an interview with Karan Thapar, that India is prepared to discuss with Pakistan conversion of the Line of Control into a formal de-jure border.

Singh, however, described as ``entirely incorrect'' suggestions that he had offered the conversion of LoC into a de-jure border.

He said that he had told the TV interviewer that, ``We have to recognise that map-making has to come to a stop in the sub-continent. If you are talking of the kind of cartographic, constant altering of South Asian situation, that cannot take place. That is a reality.''

On being further asked about the same subject, Singh says, he had responded: ``This issue can be part ofthe agenda only if it is raised by somebody. India is not going to raise it.''

Singh clarified that he was being asked to be ``explicit about an hypothesis. I do not think that is necessary''. ``The interpretations given on my TV interview are, therefore, completely erroneous and entirely the responsibility of others,'' he said. But before the clarification from Singh, government officials had to quickly set the record straight by telling the media that there was no change in India's position on Kashmir.

Later, Brajesh Mishra, principal secretary to the Prime Minister, told a rival TV channel that India was not ready to discuss conversion of LoC into an international border with Pakistan.