PM Modi recalls 1998 Pokhran Nuclear test — says ‘no power can make India bow or yield to pressure’

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday compared the present situation to the 1998 Pokhran nuclear tests, saying that no force in the world can compel India to bow down or give in to pressure.

Speaking at the Somnath Amrut Mahotsav celebration marking 75 years since the inauguration of the restored Somnath Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that certain “forces” in the country still place appeasement politics above national pride and self-respect. He also remarked that a similar mindset was evident during the opposition to the construction of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, according to a report by PTI.

“While India attained Independence in 1947, the Pran Pratishtha (consecration ceremony) of Somnath in 1951 served as a proclamation of India's liberated consciousness,” he said.

Modi stressed that the 'Amrut Mahotsav' of Somnath is not merely a commemoration of the past, but it is also a festival of inspiration for India for the next thousand years.

May 11 is a significant date as it not only marks the consecration of the Somnath temple, but also India's nuclear tests in 1998 under the leadership of then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, he said.

"On May 11, 1998, the nation conducted its nuclear tests. Our scientists demonstrated India's capabilities and potential to the entire world," Modi pointed out.

The tests “sent shockwaves across the globe” and triggered angry reactions from several countries, he said.

“Who is India to conduct nuclear tests? The world reacted with anger,” Modi said, referring to the international response following the Pokhran tests.

He said global powers then tried to isolate India through sanctions and economic pressure after the tests.

"Global powers mobilised to suppress India. Various sanctions were imposed, and every passage to avert a potential economic crisis was blocked," the PM said.

Many countries would have succumbed under such circumstances, but India stood firm, he highlighted.

“Anyone else would have faltered. When the world's major powers launch such a massive offensive, it becomes difficult to find a path ahead. But, we are built differently,” Modi asserted.

India went ahead with two more nuclear tests on May 13, 1998, despite mounting pressure from the international community, he noted.

“On May 11, our scientists had completed their task. However, on May 13, two more nuclear tests were conducted. This demonstrated to the world just how unwavering the political will of India truly is,” Modi said.

He praised the then Vajpayee-led government for refusing to bow to global pressure.

“At that time, India faced immense pressure from the entire world. Yet, under the leadership of Atal ji, the BJP government demonstrated that for us, the nation comes first. No power on earth can make India bow down or succumb to pressure,” he said.

Somnath reminds us that no nation can remain strong unless it is connected to its roots, the PM said.

In a press statement, the Department of Atomic Energy said the first three detonations were carried out simultaneously at 3:45 pm IST on May 11. These included a 45-kiloton thermonuclear device, a 15-kiloton fission device and a 0.2-kiloton sub-kiloton device. Two more nuclear devices, detonated simultaneously on May 13, were also in the sub-kiloton range, with yields of 0.5 kilotons and 0.3 kilotons.

The department said the tests marked the culmination of decades of sustained efforts towards self-reliance in India's nuclear weapons development programme. It noted that the programme drew on expertise across several disciplines, including explosive ballistics, shock wave physics, condensed matter physics, materials science, nuclear and neutron physics, radiation hydrodynamics and advanced electronics engineering.

The statement added that the development of complex computer simulation software and specialised production and fabrication technologies had also played a critical role in accurately predicting weapon yields.

According to the department, India has developed world-class expertise in several of these fields, including shock wave physics and high-pressure equation-of-state research.

(With inputs from agencies)