By IOL South Asia Correspondent

New Delhi, October 16 (IslamOnline) - India's top security planners and advisors decided Wednesday, October 16, to recall troops from the Pakistani border where they have been stationed in full alert in the aftermath of the December 13 attack on the Indian parliament.

De-escalating the tension between the two nuclear neighbors, India announced Wednesday that although it would withdraw troops deployed for nearly a year on its frontiers with Pakistan, the full build-up would remain in place on the borders of divided Kashmir.

This move is seen as an Indian maneuver to deflect intense western pressure on New Delhi to start negotiations with Pakistan. India is adamant that it will not start negotiations until "cross-border terrorism" stops completely and permanently.

Defense Minister George Fernandes said the Indian armed forces had been "asked to redeploy from positions on the international border with Pakistan, without impairing their capacity to respond decisively to any emergency."

He declined to give the manner or a time-frame of the withdrawal. "Let there be no confusion. The troops will be redeployed," he said, adding the modalities of the pull-back would be worked out by the heads of India's million-plus army and the chiefs of navy and the air force.

India's National Security Advisory Board Wednesday recommended a "calibrated withdrawal" of troops from the Indo-Pak border, saying their continued presence "may not be the best option."

The meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, discussed several issues including the deployment of troops along the border and relations with Pakistan.

The board listened to a political analysis by board chairman and former Indian ambassador to China CV Rangnathan. The military aspects of the recommendations were made by former army chief General VP Malik.

The meeting was attended by Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani, External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha, Finance Minister Jaswant Singh, the three service chiefs (army, air and navy), National Security Adviser to the prime minister Brajesh Mishra and other members of the board who are drawn from the political and intelligence community.

India had been maintaining that the troops would remain deployed till the completion of Jammu & Kashmir elections so as to gauge how Pakistan behaved during the polls.

Despite heavy deployment, the J&K elections were the bloodiest in the state's history. More than 830 people were killed from the announcement of the elections schedule to its completion on October 8.

The mobilization of troops at the border was made last December. Ever since, an estimated six to seven hundred thousand Indian soldiers have remained deployed, though from last July, armed forces personnel have been allowed leave on compassionate grounds.

Early last month, leaves were suddenly canceled amid unconfirmed reports of an Indian incursion into Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

Seen by the world as a possible cause of a full-fledged war with Pakistan, the military standoff has not served India's purpose and New Delhi has been increasingly seen in world capitals as belligerent and unreasonable.

Meanwhile, India was shocked by the blunt U.S. stand that Washington alone can take "pre-emptive" strikes.