Given the recent developments in the region, do you think that there is a need to change India’s ‘No First Use (NFU) nuclear policy?
How the answer moves
The flow snapshot — the routes in, the body, the counter-view and the routes out.
Route 1 locate NFU (1998 → 2003 doctrine, CBW caveat) → credible minimum deterrence → is it now a liability?
Route 2 region shifted (Pak tactical, China rise) → pressures real → stake the spine: capability, not first-use posture
case for revision: China ~500 warheads erode Himalayan buffer + Pak sub-conventional / Nasr → Karnad “unenforceable,” peacetime-only → Chari frees Pak’s tactical use → Clary & Narang counterforce logic + exceptions to NFU → capabilities present (missiles, surveillance, BMD) but disarming strike “exceptionally difficult” → intent outpaces capability
retention holds: Sethi “liberating” (no first-use infra, no hair-trigger) → Subrahmanyam perception of survivable retaliation, not pre-emption → Basrur deployment differs little beyond declaratory policy
Route 1 Sindoor 2025 = punish terror without nuclear signalling → read as gradual recalibration + doctrinal ambiguity, not reversal
Route 2 NFU suits conventionally dominant power, no existential threat → retain + strengthen triad / early warning / second-strike credibility
Model answer
Handwritten, in the form it would be written in the examination hall.
Also asked on this head
India and the Nuclear Question — 8 questions in the Vault.
- Critically examine India’s persistent refusal to sign the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT) despite being recognized as a de facto nuclear power.
- “India’s Nuclear policy is deeply influenced by its cultural beliefs and the pragmatic approach of its foreign policy.’ Discuss.
- Discuss the reasons behind India’s refusal to sign the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT).
How this is taught
The same flow snapshot, built for every head of the syllabus, with the answer written in class.
The first session of Foundation 2027 is published in full.
Six programmes across three levels.