๐ Topic 06 of 6 ยท Chapter 02 ยท Defence Technology & DRDO
India’s Nuclear Doctrine & Pokhran Tests
No First Use policy, Pokhran tests, nuclear triad, complete revision โ UPSC & PSC exams.
โข๏ธ India’s Nuclear Tests
| Test | Date | Codename | PM | Key Facts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pokhran-I | May 18, 1974 | Smiling Buddha | Indira Gandhi | India’s first nuclear test; India = 6th country to test nuclear device; “peaceful nuclear explosion” |
| Pokhran-II | May 11-13, 1998 | Operation Shakti | Atal Bihari Vajpayee | 5 tests in 3 days; India declared nuclear weapons state; USA imposed sanctions; Pakistan tested in response |
โข๏ธ India’s Nuclear Doctrine
- No First Use (NFU) โ India will NOT use nuclear weapons first; only retaliatory use
- Credible Minimum Deterrence โ maintain minimum nuclear arsenal for deterrence
- Massive Retaliation โ any nuclear attack on India = massive nuclear response
- Civilian Control โ nuclear weapons under civilian control (PM chairs Nuclear Command Authority)
- Doctrine formalised in 2003
- India does NOT use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear states
โข๏ธ Nuclear Triad
- Land โ Agni ballistic missiles (Agni-I to Agni-V)
- Sea โ INS Arihant (SSBN) with K-15/K-4 submarine-launched ballistic missiles
- Air โ Aircraft (Mirage 2000, Jaguar, Rafale) with nuclear bombs
- Nuclear triad ensures second-strike capability โ even if two legs are destroyed, third can retaliate
- INS Arihant (2016) completed India’s nuclear triad
โ Chapter 02 โ Complete Revision Checklist
โ
DRDO founded 1958; HQ New Delhi; 50+ labs
โ Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam = “Missile Man of India” = IGMDP chief = 11th President
โ IGMDP (1983) = Agni + Prithvi + Akash + Nag + Trishul
โ Agni-V = ICBM = 5,000โ8,000 km = MIRV capable
โ BrahMos = India-Russia = Mach 2.8 = world’s fastest cruise missile
โ BrahMos = Brahmaputra + Moskva rivers
โ Philippines = first BrahMos export customer (2022)
โ Tejas = LCA = HAL = 4th generation = replaces MiG-21
โ Arjun = MBT = CVRDE Chennai = 68 tonnes
โ INS Vikrant = first indigenous aircraft carrier = 2022 = Cochin Shipyard
โ INS Arihant = first nuclear submarine = 2016 = completes nuclear triad
โ India’s nuclear doctrine = No First Use (NFU) policy
โ Pokhran-I (1974) = Smiling Buddha = PM Indira Gandhi
โ Pokhran-II (1998) = Operation Shakti = PM Vajpayee = 5 tests
โ Mission Shakti (2019) = ASAT test = India = 4th country with ASAT capability
โ Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam = “Missile Man of India” = IGMDP chief = 11th President
โ IGMDP (1983) = Agni + Prithvi + Akash + Nag + Trishul
โ Agni-V = ICBM = 5,000โ8,000 km = MIRV capable
โ BrahMos = India-Russia = Mach 2.8 = world’s fastest cruise missile
โ BrahMos = Brahmaputra + Moskva rivers
โ Philippines = first BrahMos export customer (2022)
โ Tejas = LCA = HAL = 4th generation = replaces MiG-21
โ Arjun = MBT = CVRDE Chennai = 68 tonnes
โ INS Vikrant = first indigenous aircraft carrier = 2022 = Cochin Shipyard
โ INS Arihant = first nuclear submarine = 2016 = completes nuclear triad
โ India’s nuclear doctrine = No First Use (NFU) policy
โ Pokhran-I (1974) = Smiling Buddha = PM Indira Gandhi
โ Pokhran-II (1998) = Operation Shakti = PM Vajpayee = 5 tests
โ Mission Shakti (2019) = ASAT test = India = 4th country with ASAT capability