China has assured India of steps to reduce trade imbalance with New Delhi. Talking to reporters on board the special aircraft after his five day visit to China and Kazakhstan, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh said that the Chinese President Hu Jintao conceded that it is the responsibility of Beijing also to reduce trade imbalance with India. Dr. Singh said Defence exchanges with China will continue and work is in progress to set up a mechanism to address the irritants along the border as per the agreements reached earlier. He said that wide range of issues came up for discussion in the BRICS meeting and at meetings with the Presidents of Brazil, Russia and South Africa on the sidelines of the summit. Dr. Singh arrived back home last night. He described his visit to the two countries as fruitful. About his meetings with Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev and the Prime Minister, Dr. Singh said it was an opportunity for the two countries to upgrade the strategic partnership. The Prime Minister said that there is a growing support for India's bid to the permanent membership of the UN Security Council. He, however, said that he could not say what the exact status is and described it as work in progress. In response to a question about attack by civil society members on him Dr. Singh said he is not unduly disturbed. He said, he respects social activist Anna Hazare as an important leader as he has done a lot of work in rural development. On supply of nuclear reactors to Kazakhstan, Dr. Singh said, no concrete decision has been taken so far. Referring to use of nuclear energy for generating power, he said he is convinced that it is a viable and clean source of energy. He said, there is alarm about the extensive use of nuclear energy in the backdrop of what happened at Fukushima in Japan. Our correspondent reports that New Delhi has taken a series of measures to ensure safety of nuclear power plants in the country. Governmet also proposes to bring legislation in the monsoon session of Parliament to tighten the nuclear regulatory regime. On a question about Pakistan, Dr. Singh said he will consider he has done his job well if relations between the two countries normalise. India and Kazakhistan have decided to cooperate in the peaceful use of civil nuclear energy and oil and gas exploration. The central Asian country will supply 2,100 tons of uranium to India by 2014 and ONGC Videsh will buy a 25 percent stake in the Satpayev exploration block in the hydrocarbon-rich region of the Caspian Sea area. The two sides also decided to strengthen their ties in the areas of pharmaceuticals, IT, Mining, Fertilizer, Science and technology, Cyber security, Mutual legal assistance and cooperation in agriculture, Healthcare, medical services. The two countries will also cooperate in establishing research and medical institutes. They signed eight agreements yesterday.