Former president A P J Abdul Kalam on Thursday favoured India signing the nuclear deal with the US, saying that it would benefit the country which needs uranium supplies till thorium reactors are ready.

"We need a supply of uranium till our thorium reactors are ready," Kalam said on the sidelines of the International Conference on Aerospace Science and Technology, organised by the National Space Laboratories to mark the institute's golden jubilee celebration.

"The pact will help us," he said.

On tapping alternate sources of power like hydel and thermal energy, Kalam said that tapping thermal power had some issues related to environmental concerns.

But India could explore options of hydel, solar, nuclear and biofuels, he said.