India can produce up to 492 nuclear bombs: Pak think-tank

Islamabad, October 25

India has sufficient material and the technical capacity to produce between 356 and 492 nuclear bombs, a research by a Pakistani think-tank has claimed.

The study titled 'Indian Unsafeguarded Nuclear Program' published by the Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad (ISSI) is co-authored by four nuclear scholars — Adeela Azam, Ahmed Khan, Mohammad Ali and Sameer Khan.

"A groundbreaking research study reveals that India already has sufficient material and technical capacity to make 356 to 492 nuclear bombs. This work is in contrast to several earlier studies which took a much modest view of the Indian nuclear bomb-making potential," the ISSI said in a statement.

It said that the purpose of the study was to provide an understanding of the true history, size, extent and capabilities of the different aspects of the complex Indian nuclear programme that New Delhi has kept outside the International Atomic Agency safeguards.

According to the authors, the study contains evidence that India has the largest and oldest un-safeguarded nuclear programme in the developing world and among the states not party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

Former Chairman Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission Ansar Pervez said the research breaks new ground by providing officials, researchers, scholars and students with new insight into India's nuclear weapon making capacity. — PTI