A five-strong team of moderate separatists, headed by Muslim cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, arrived in a three-car convoy at Singh's official residence in New Delhi for the talks, which home ministry officials said would be followed by a working dinner.

The discussions are part of a wider peace process between India and Pakistan to settle their long-festering dispute over the scenic Himalayan territory that has triggered two of their three wars.

Farooq, who leads a moderate faction of Kashmir's main separatist alliance, the All Parties Hurriyat Conference, was accompanied by fellow separatist leaders Abdul Gani Bhat, Maulana Abbas Ansari, Fazal Haque Qureshi and Bilal Lone.

The five also held two rounds of talks with India's previous Hindu nationalist government early last year.

Kashmir's main political separatist alliance headed into peace talks with the Indian prime minister yesterday, seeking trust and an easing of harsh military controls in the long-troubled region.

The dialogue between the All Parties Hurriyat Conference and Manmohan Singh -- the first since a Congress-party led coalition took power last year -- comes ahead of the prime minister's talks with Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf next week.

"We feel that the government of India has to show seriousness and sincerity," Hurriyat's chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, told Reuters ahead of the meeting in New Delhi. "It is important to build trust."

Farooq, 34, who will lead a five-member Hurriyat team at the dialogue, said the alliance would reiterate its demand for trilateral negotiations involving New Delhi, Islama-bad and Kashmiris to resolve a dispute that triggered two wars between India and Pakistan.