1. On May 11, 1998, three very special technological advances were showcased by India’s scientists and engineers — Operation Shakti, also known widely as Pokhran-II nuclear tests; the successful test firing of Trishul missile; and the first test flight of the indigenously developed aircraft Hansa.
2. The euphoria of demonstrations of these technologies was such that the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee added ‘Jai Vigyan’ (Hail Science) to Lal Bahadur Shastri’s popular slogan of ‘Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan’ (Hail the soldier and the farmer).
3. Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee also designated May 11 as National Technology Day in India to commemorate the historic Pokhran-II nuclear tests. The following year, on May 11, 1999, the Council for Technology organised the inaugural celebration of National Technology Day.
4. India is currently among eight countries in the world that have a publicly known nuclear weapons programme.
Atal Bihari Vajpayee , George Fernandes, Abdul Kalam, Pramod Mahajan, Bhairon Singh Shekhawat with scientists and Army officials at the site of India’s second nuclear test in Pokharan, Rajasthan. (Express Photo by Ravi Batra)
History of India’s nuclear tests
At the time of India’s independence, the country’s leaders were opposed to fully embracing nuclear weapons. Just two years before in 1945, the world had witnessed the horrific nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Mahatma Gandhi called the use of nuclear weapons morally unacceptable. His protege and India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, was also sceptical, but kept the door open for future consideration.
Why India conducted its nuclear tests?
1. This future beckoned early, as India’s defeat in the 1962 Sino-Indian War and and China’s subsequent nuclear bomb test at Lop Nor in 1964 gave rise to legitimate fears about national security. Things were further accelerated, when in 1965, India went to war with Pakistan once again, with China openly supporting Pakistan this time.
2. Also, post 1974, Pakistan had actively started acquiring nuclear weapons. China was sharing technology and materials with Pakistan, and it was public knowledge. Effectively, India was faced with two nuclear capable adversaries, and needed to take steps towards building self-sufficiency.
Pokhran-I (1974)
1. By the 1970s, India was capable of conducting a nuclear bomb test. Bhaba’s successor at the DAE, Vikram Sarabhai, had worked to significantly broaden India’s nuclear technology and now the question was more of political will, especially in context of a global order extremely wary of nuclear proliferation.
2. On May 18, 1974, with support from Indira, India carried out its first nuclear test at the Pokhran test site. Pokhran-I, codenamed Operation Smiling Buddha, would be billed as a “peaceful nuclear explosion”, with “few military implications”.
Prime Minister Indira Gandhi visits the site of the nuclear explosion at Pokhran in Rajasthan in 1974. (Express archive photo)
3. However, the world was not willing to buy India’s version of the story. There was near-universal condemnation and countries like the US and Canada imposed significant international sanctions on India. These sanctions would be a major setback for India’s nuclear journey, and majorly decelerate its progress.
Pokhran-II (1998)
1. Beyond international sanctions, India’s nuclear journey was also hobbled by domestic political instability. The Emergency of 1975 and Prime Minister Morarji Desai’s opposition to nuclear weapons brought the programme to a grinding halt.
2. After a few years of domestic turmoil when the political will to conduct nuclear testing was wanting, in 1998, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by the BJP came to power under the leadership of Atal Bihari Vajpayee. One of the key promises in its manifesto was to “induct nuclear weapons” into India’s arsenal.
3. In March 1998, Pakistan launched the Ghauri missile – built with assistance from China. Two months later, India responded with Operation Shakti.
4. Notably, while the 1974 tests were ostensibly done for peaceful purposes, the 1998 tests were the culmination of India’s nuclear weaponisation process. Consequently, the Indian Government declared itself as a state possessing nuclear weapons following Pokhran-II.
5. While the tests in 1998 also invited sanctions from some countries (like the US), the condemnation was far from universal like in 1974. In context of India’s fast-growing economy and market potential, India was able to stand its ground and thus cement its status as a dominant nation state.
March since Pokhran
Shekhar Mande ( former director general of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research) explains–
1. “Since 1998, the country has continued steadily in its journey of technological developments. Among the visible examples of India’s impactful technological progress are the digital payment gateways that have democratised financial transactions like never before, and exemplify India’s leadership in the world in this area.
2. Lesser-known milestones that have quietly been achieved are making of indigenous BioJet fuels, mapping of subsurface water channels for sustainable use of water, making of indigenous light combat aircraft, development of variety of crops by traditional methods of breeding, digitisation of many aspects of trade, and moving firmly towards a Hydrogen economy.
3. The recent push for infrastructural development, including promotion of use of domestic and industrial waste in it, and its spectacular results, are already making headlines. By steadily reducing energy dependence on natural resources and by promoting renewable energy, India is already in the league of nations where carbon footprint in the energy sector is likely to reduce dramatically.
4. Challenges, however, remain in many areas, including urban infrastructure and planning, containing air, water and soil pollution, slowing down rural to urban migrations, diversification of agricultural produce, judicious use of water resources, and promotion of AI/ ML technologies in all industrial segments.”
BEYOND THE NUGGET: India’s Nuclear Doctrine & Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)
1. On January 4, 2003, when Vajpayee was India’s Prime Minister, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) met to review the progress in operationalizing the country’s nuclear doctrine. An official release issued that day summarized the decisions that were being put in the public domain.
2. Among the major points in the doctrine was “a posture of No First Use”, which was described as follows: “Nuclear weapons will only be used in retaliation against a nuclear attack on Indian territory or on Indian forces anywhere”. However, the doctrine made it clear that India’s “nuclear retaliation to a first strike will be massive and designed to inflict unacceptable damage”. Also, “in the event of a major attack against India, or Indian forces anywhere, by biological or chemical weapons, India will retain the option of retaliating with nuclear weapons”.
The doctrine also said:
* Nuclear retaliatory attacks can only be authorised by the civilian political leadership through the Nuclear Command Authority. The Nuclear Command Authority comprises a Political Council and an Executive Council. The Political Council is chaired by the Prime Minister.
* India would not use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear weapon states.
* India would continue to put strict controls on the export of nuclear and missile related materials and technologies, participate in the Fissile Material Cutoff Treaty negotiations, and continue to observe the moratorium on nuclear tests.
* India remains committed to the goal of a nuclear weapons free world, through global, verifiable and non-discriminatory nuclear disarmament.
Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)
1. The NPT is an international treaty whose objective is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to foster the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, and to further the goal of disarmament.
2. In 1968, the NPT came into existence. The treaty defines nuclear-weapon states as those that have built and tested a nuclear explosive device before January 1, 1967 – the US, Russia (formerly USSR), the UK, France and China – and effectively disallows any other state from acquiring nuclear weapons.
3. While the treaty has been signed by almost every country in the world, India is one of the few non-signatories.
Post Read Question
Consider the following countries: (UPSC CSE 2015)
1. China.
2. France
3. India
4. Israel
5. Pakistan
Which among the above are Nuclear Weapons States as recognized by the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, commonly known as Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1, 3, 4 and 5 only
(c) 2, 4 and 5 only
(d) 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5
(Sources: Leaps India has taken, and what remains to be done, Nuclear scientist Anil Kakodkar explains: How Pokhran happened, 25th anniversary of Pokhran-II: India’s journey to become a nuclear power, India’s doctrine of Nuclear No First Use)
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The Shakti-II site after the Pokhran Nuclear tests on May 11, 1998. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons) 
Atal Bihari Vajpayee , George Fernandes, Abdul Kalam, Pramod Mahajan, Bhairon Singh Shekhawat with scientists and Army officials at the site of India’s second nuclear test in Pokharan, Rajasthan. (Express Photo by Ravi Batra)
Prime Minister Indira Gandhi visits the site of the nuclear explosion at Pokhran in Rajasthan in 1974. (Express archive photo)
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