VADODARA, May 19: The international sanctions imposed on India following the nuclear tests conducted at Pokhran have left the common man in doubt about their possible repercussions on the ensuing Union Budget. Sharing their views on the same, experts at a panel discussion on `Nuclear Explosion Vis-A-Vis Economic Implosions' organised by the Rotary Club of Jawaharnagar on Tuesday, debated whether a greater expenditure on defence would prove a wise move by the government.Expressing his sympathies towards satisfying the basic needs of the common man, former advisor of the Planning Commission Manubhai Shroff said in the coming domestic budget policies, the BJP would now have to do away with many of the points on its national agenda. ``In stark economic terms, I worry that the success of the Pokhran tests would lead to a substantial diversion of the government's attention towards defence,'' he said.Former Governor of the Reserve Bank of India I G Patel stated that he felt neither greatly excited nor entirely indignant about the Pokhran blasts. He stressed that the nuclear power had nothing to do with national security as it could not be easily put to practical use.``We cannot simply launch a nuclear attack on China for we know they can do the same. It would be a pity if the government starts spending more on stockpiling of atomic bombs,'' he said. However, the former RBI chief added, ``a greater attention should be given to the development of conventional arms.''According to Air Commodore P P Raj Kumar, Indian Air Force Station Commander, Vadodara, nuclear weapons would prove useful as deterrents. ``Now we can expect no big wars between us and our neighbours. This is because when two nuclear countries fight each other, they can never know the threshold. So whether you have five bombs or 100, they can be equally effective as deterrents,'' he said.However, having nuclear power did not mean that insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir would come to a halt, he added. ``It is not enough to have bombs. We must also have long range aircraft, missiles and submarines to drop those bombs ,'' he said.
