India has declared that its nuclear triad, stated
in its nuclear doctrine, is operational after indigenous ballistic missile
nuclear submarine INS Arihant recently achieved a milestone by conducting its
first deterrence patrol.
The submarine recently
returned from its first deterrence patrol, completing the establishment of the
country’s survivable nuclear triad. INS Arihant is now capable of prowling the
deep seas carrying ballistic missiles equipped with nuclear warheads.
This places India in the
league of the few countries that can design, construct and operate ship
submersible ballistic nuclear (SSBN).
Given India’s stated position
of ‘No-First-Use’ (NFU) in launching nuclear weapons, the ship submersible
ballistic nuclear (SSBN) is the most dependable platform for a second-strike.
Because they are powered by nuclear reactors, these submarines can stay
underwater indefinitely without the adversary detecting it. The other two
platforms — land-based and air-launched are far easier to detect.
Arihant was commissioned into
service in August 2016. It has a displacement of 6000 tonnes and is powered by
an 83 MW pressurised light-water reactor with enriched uranium.
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