India completes nuclear triad with Arihant patrol

Country achieves nuke capabilities in air, land, sea; PM says it’s historic

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday triumphantly announced that India’s first indigenous nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine, INS Arihant, has successfully completed its first deterrence patrol and that the success of the submarine “gives a fitting response to those who indulge in nuclear blackmail”, in his first comments on the topsecret Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) project.

The fully operational submarine completes the sea leg of India’s nuclear triad, giving it enduring nuclear strike and counterstrike capabilities.

“Today is historic because it marks the completing of the successful establishment of the nuclear triad. India’s nuclear triad will be an important pillar of global peace and stability,” Modi wrote in a series of tweets on Arihant.

The United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France and China are the only countries that can deliver nuclear warheads from a submarine.

The 6,000-tonne Arihant, which means destroyer of enemies, is armed with 12 B-05 submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) capable of delivering nuclear warheads up to 750km away.

The range, however, is a limitation and India needs to deploy SLBMs capable of striking targets thousands of kilometres away, experts said.

“True to its name, INS Arihant will protect the 130 crore Indians from external threats,” Modi said in another tweet on India’s newest nuclear delivery platform, after meeting the boat’s crew on Monday. The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said INS Arihant had “recently returned” from its maiden deterrence patrol.

What does this actually mean? “The submarine is fully operational now, the crew has worked and the missiles are loaded. It will stay on continuous deterrence patrols and when the signal goes out from New Delhi to INS Arihant, it should be able to launch a nuclear missile,” explained Admiral Arun Prakash, a former navy chief.

India already has the capability to carry out nuclear strikes with fighter planes and landlaunched missiles.