"Why should I bind myself? I should say I am a responsible nuclear power and I will not use it irresponsibly. This is my (personal) thinking," Parrikar said replying to a question as he explained the need to be unpredictable in warfare strategy.
A US nonprofit policy think tank, the Federation of American Scientists (FAS), estimates India's nuclear arsenal at 190 warheads, including those for new missiles under production. The report highlights India's ongoing modernisation of its nuclear capabilities and adherence to a no-first-use doctrine, while also noting uncertainties in warhead designs and plutonium reserves.
'The Indian gung-ho leadership may like to think about it, there should never ever be a doubt in anyone's mind, friend or foe, that Pakistan's operationally ready nuclear capability enables every Pakistani leader the liberty, the dignity and the courage to look straight into the Indian eye and never blink.'
India is increasingly focusing on long-range weapons capable of reaching targets across China.
"The no-first-use policy for nuclear weapons was a well thought out stand... We don't intend to reverse it," BJP President Rajnath Singh told a national newspaper in an interview printed on Monday.
'Pakistan's is the only military-controlled nuclear weapons programme in the world.' 'As people get radicalised, the risk of a brigadier or pilot taking matters into their own hands is a real concern.'
Pakistan's powerful army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani does not support President Asif Ali Zardari's "no-first-use" nuclear policy, according to US diplomatic cables released by whistle-blower website WikiLeaks.
On Thursday, the Chinese military published its ICBM launch photos, shedding its secrecy.
India is strengthening the naval component of its nuclear triad with Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi on Tuesday saying that the third indigenous nuclear-powered submarine 'Aridaman' will be commissioned soon and that his force is focusing on boosting its overall combat prowess.
"We have a nuclear doctrine and a Nuclear and Strategic Force Command chain in position. So we stand by the no-first-use policy," Fernandes told newsmen when asked to comment on calls by some experts to give up the no-first-use policy.
'India has strictly adhered to the 'No First Use' policy. What happens in future depends on the circumstances'
Pitching for a nuclear weapon free world, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday proposed a global convention for 'no-first-use' of atomic arsenal to make the world a safer place.
Promising to strictly adhere to policy of no-first-use of atomic weapons, China on Monday called on other nuclear weapons states to "abandon the nuclear deterrence policy based on first use".
According to Mr Babar, within four days of this interview the Mumbai terror attack was underway, bringing the two countries closest to war in years -- 'The warmongers shattered Zardari's dream of peace with India'.
'Shock, confusion, and paralysis reigned.' 'Pakistan was caught in a most embarrassing situation. It could neither claim credit for the operation nor admit to a dismal intelligence failure and lack of army preparedness.'
The NFUP smacks of an extremist version of masochism. It's tantamount to: You, there, c'mon clobber me, but if you leave me alive I'll disembowel you!
'India for its survival has to change its doctrine from no first use to a pre-emptive attack in case of any hostile move by Pakistan,' recommends Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
He brushed aside Pakistan's threat of use of tactical nuclear weapons, saying such statements will not deter India when it comes to defending our borders.
The extended range of the missile which is part of the Strategic Forces Command will give a variety of options to the planners during times of conflict.
The first issue in engaging with Pakistan is the cessation of terrorism, India's envoy at the United Nations said, underlining that India has been a long-standing victim of cross-border and global terrorism and has zero tolerance towards the scourge.
The National Security Strategy document should flag all major issues concerning security strategy and provide guidelines to concerned departments to work out suitable action plans. Since the global and regional geopolitical canvas is dynamic, the NSS document should be deliberated at length before formulation and should be reviewed periodically, recommends Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
It was good fortune for India to have Atal Bihari Vajpayee lead the government at a crucial moment in our history. He avoided India meeting the fate of Iraq or Ukraine, asserts military historian Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
This is the first time in decades that China has made its flight test of an intercontinental ballistic missile public in an apparent show of strategic deterrence, State-run China Daily reported.
'Imagine a scenario where a terror strike by Pakistan-supported jihadis causes thousands of deaths in India. India in retaliation destroys terror camps in Pakistan occupied Kashmir.' 'There is a clamour for revenge in Pakistan and that country begins to fuel its missiles for a nuclear strike against India and that is detected by Indian satellites.' 'No sane government in India will then wait for the nuclear bombs to fall on Delhi before launching its own strike. To be effective, this may well involve nuclear weapons.' Colonel Anil A Athale (retd) says the change in the 'No First Use' pledge in the BJP manifesto is long overdue.
Neither the BJP, nor the Congress before it, made any manifesto commitments on defence spending, even though allocations have plummeted from 4 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in the late 1980s to less than 2 per cent today, points out Ajai Shukla.
"The ultimate aim should be to have at least four such submarines so that at least one, if not two, are on patrol duty at all times," said Padmanabhan.
India's nuclear-powered submarine INS Arihant on Friday carried out a successful launch of a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) in the Bay of Bengal with a 'very high accuracy', the defence ministry said.
The old Parliament building will now be known as 'Samvidhan Sadan', Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said on Tuesday as the functioning of Parliament shifted to its new building in New Delhi.
Former NSA Shivshankar Menon said the defence minister did not have a right to voice his personal opinion on nuclear policy in public, particularly when that opinion contradicted the country's official policy.
Citing certain examples, Naik said the defence minister 'falsely claims that India never conducted surgical strikes in the past'.
It is time the new government, unencumbered with the burden of past, initiates a wide ranging review and open debate on the security issues to rectify our short term and long term shortcomings. It has taken some wise steps but has to go beyond this to identify the structural weakness and create systems, says Colonel (retd) Anil Athale.
Being a pragmatist Modi is not likely to give preference to China over Japan. Both security and economic aspects are likely to shape Modi's decision in terms of engaging the two biggest economies of Asia, says Sana Hashmi.
China is expanding its nuclear force and is likely to have a stockpile of about 1,500 warheads by 2035, up from the current estimated number of 400, the Pentagon has said in a report that notes that Beijing aims to expand its national power through both domestic and foreign policy initiatives.
'Once the military starts to draw up plans for using nuclear weapons, then nuclear weapons could be used earlier in a crisis than otherwise.'
North Korea on Wednesday announced that it had successfully carried out its first hydrogen bomb test, marking a major step forward in its nuclear development, if confirmed.
The new government must initiate a comprehensive review of India's nuclear weapons doctrine and posture. Ajai Shukla explains
In a major boost to its military might, India on Wednesday successfully test-fired surface-to-surface strategic missile Agni-5 that can strike targets at ranges up to 5,000 km with a very high degree of accuracy, officials said.
'The BJP has done the Uri surgical strikes, handled the Dokalam crisis and the Balakot strikes.' 'So if there is a de-escalation only at the diplomatic level and not resolving this issue of a colonel being killed, then it translates into public anger.'
Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi's belated attempt to project himself as a statesman and a man of reason in his interviews to ANI and TV9 is being viewed with dollops of scepticism by his critics and political opponents. Anita Katyal reports.
