Defence Minister George Fernandes told reporters the pullback could be over within two months.

The redeployment... has begun. The entire exercise will be completed in a two-month timeframe

Defence Minister George Fernandes

India began its military build-up after an attack on the parliament in Delhi last December by militants who India says were aided by Pakistan, a charge the latter denies.

The two nuclear-armed rivals between them deployed more than a million soldiers along their common border in the months that followed.

At the height of the crisis, Western governments urged their citizens to leave the region for fear the conflict could turn nuclear.

Separatists

Last week, the two neighbours both announced their intention to pull troops out, after concerted international pressure helped lower tensions.

Troops are delighted to be going home

But they have so far showed no signs of moving towards peace talks - Delhi says Pakistan must first fully end militant incursions into Indian-administered Kashmir before direct talks can take place.

Mr Fernandes said the withdrawal would not include soldiers stationed along the Line of Control, dividing the disputed Kashmir region.

He described the 10-month deployment, India's longest and biggest during peacetime, as a "tough time" for soldiers who had been moved to the front.

He linked the withdrawal to what he said was the lower level of infiltration by Kashmiri separatists during the winter.

He said the troops being moved would be from parts of Jammu, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat.

Mines

A BBC reporter in the Punjab capital, Chandigarh, says troops are pulling out of forward locations, albeit in small numbers.

Reports from the border area say trucks have been seen ferrying soldiers to inland, peacetime locations.

Some soldiers heading home told reporters they were thrilled at the prospect of being able to spend the forthcoming Hindu festival of Diwali with their families.

But locals near the border still face the dangers posed by mines laid in thousands of acres of fertile farmland.

Our correspondent says it may be some months before the process of mine clearance can be completed.