India’s first nuclear explosion took place in the Rajasthan desert, at a remote location called Pokhran, on May 18, 1974. At the time, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was at great pains to stress that this was not a weapon, but a “peaceful” nuclear explosion.
There was vague talk of harnessing the explosive power of the atom for excavating mines and creating deep-water harbors. None of these pleasant words were any reassurance to the
advocates of nonproliferation, and the United States publicly denied that there was any distinction between explosions with a peaceful or a military intent. U.S. policymakers braced for the likelihood that further testing and overt weaponization of India’s nuclear
potential would shortly be forthcoming. But to most observers’ surprise, this did not occur… not for another twenty-four years, almost to the day.
On May 11, 1998, the world was given a new shock by the Indian nuclear establishment. Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, sworn into office less than two
months previously, announced that India had detonated three nuclear explosives at the test site at Pokhran, including one that he claimed was “thermonuclear.” This time there were
no fig leaves about “peaceful nuclear explosions,” and Vajpayee openly and defiantly declared “India is now a nuclear-weapons state.” This made India the sixth overt nuclear
power, and the first country to declare itself such in 34 years. Two days later, India tested two more devices and then declared that this round of testing was complete.