When “Buddha finally smiles”: How India does its first nuclear test as a “peaceful explosion”
On May 18, 1974, India became the sixth country to conduct nuclear tests, which was trapped in the United States and other countries. A nuclear device was detonated in Rajasthan near Pokland, and the operation was coded “Smiling Buddha”.
On the morning of May 18, 1974, a nuclear device was detonated in the Rajasthan desert near Pokran, India. This event shocked the whole world. On September 7, 1972, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi authorized work on nuclear fission installations.
A select team of about 75 scientists and engineers from the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) carried out the secret mission of designing and developing India’s first atomic bomb. The result is Pokhran-iThis is an underground nuclear test conducted in 1974 in the remote desert of Rajasthan. Formerly known as the “peaceful nuclear explosion”, the test is positioned essentially as non-military. Therefore, India became the first country to successfully conduct nuclear tests of five permanent members of the UN Security Council (UNSC), labeling it as the sixth nuclear-capable country.
The p of the device was extracted from the CIRU (Canada Indian Reactor United States) research reactor, a 40 MW reactor that started operating in Canada. The device is designed similar to the implosion design used on the Fat Man bomb, but the Indian design is simpler and simpler than the American system.
What happened after smiling Buddha statue?
Thereafter, India conducted a second nuclear test in 1998, led by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, known as Operation Pokran-II or Shakti. The first three explosions occurred at 15:45 h. May 11. This includes a 45 kt thermonuclear device, a 15 kt fission device and a 0.2 kt sub-kiloton (i.e., less than 1,000 seats) device. Two nuclear devices that were simultaneously detonated on May 13 were also in the Aquiton range – 0.5 and 0.3 kt. The May 1998 test was a complete success in achieving its scientific goals, as well as the ability to build fission and thermonuclear weapons, with a production of 200 kt and a maximum of 200 kt.
The basis of this historic event was in the previous decades. India strongly opposes the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which came into force in 1970. New Delhi considers the treaty to be discriminatory, argues that it denies equal rights to states outside of established nuclear forces and seeks to limit India’s right to establish its own nuclear technology.
The smiling Buddha is a geopolitical statement, which is a scientific achievement. It demonstrates India’s ability to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes while strengthening its strategic autonomy. The success of the test in 1974 laid the foundation for further development of India’s nuclear capabilities, which eventually led to a series of tests conducted in 1998 under Operation Shakti.
Pokhran-I’s legacy persistence testifies India’s determination to innovate scientifically and pursue self-reliance in defense and technology.
