The minister said this following a meeting with a group of 30 school children from Pakistan on a week-long visit to India. Responding cautiously to questions about the future of India-Pakistan relations, Singh said that one must keep in mind the fact that this is the fourth time India was witnessing such developments in its neighbourhood. ``It is a matter of concern to us. Whatever is happening in Pakistan is not clear. It will not be proper to say what will happen in coming days,'' he said.

Singh denied reports that Indian armed forces were on a ``highalert'' following the military takeover in Pakistan. ``But the forces are vigilant,'' he said.

Singh also brushed aside concerns voiced by some Western nations about the possibility of a nuclear flare-up in the sub-continent. Such fears were ``totally unfounded,'' he said. But he asserted that ``there cannot be and will be no compromise'' on the issue of cross-border terrorism sponsored by Pakistan. The policy on terrorism would be guided by the principle of ``zero tolerance'' as stated by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, he added.

However, Singh was optimistic that developments in Pakistan would not have a bearing on transport linkages and people-to-people contacts between the two countries. The fact that the two-way Delhi-Lahore bus service continued to operate was proof enough, he said. In fact, as part of efforts to promote people-to-people contacts, visa restrictions had been eased following a decision to this effect taken by Prime Ministers of the two countries at the historic Lahore summit, hesaid.

In response to a question, Singh confirmed that US President Bill Clinton's visit to India was ``very much on cards.'' It was up to the US administration to work out something according to their convenience, he said. Maintaining that Indo-US relations were improving, Singh said this was also reflected in the telephone conversation Clinton had with Vajpayee soon after the Indian leader assumed charge as Prime Minister for the third time.

``I do hope and trust that the direction in which Indo-US relations are proceeding will continue to gather momentum,'' he said, adding both sides looked forward to further deepening of contacts and widening of the dialogue process between the two nations. The minister said he was looking forward to the visit of US Energy Secretary Bill Richardson to Delhi on October 26.

On the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) issue, Singh said India's position, despite what happened in the Senate, ``remains unchanged.'' The Republican-dominated US Senate had earlier this weekrejected ratification of the Treaty. He said that India had announced a moratorium on nuclear testing soon after the Pokharan explosions in May last year. ``That moratorium remains without any change whatsoever. There will be no further testing,'' he said.

Earlier, addressing the Pakistani students, the minister said that the future of India and Pakistan depended on the younger generation and they should ensure that the two countries live in peace and amity and make concerted efforts to face the challenges of poverty alleviation and unemployment.