India’s Nuclear Developments – SIPRI 2025 Report

Relevance : GS-2 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

Warhead Count

India increased its nuclear warhead count from 172 (2024) to an estimated 180. India is developing advanced nuclear delivery systems, enhancing both survivability and strike capabilities.

Advanced Nuclear Delivery Systems

Canisterised Missiles

Warheads pre-mounted and sealed in containers → allow rapid launch, safe transport, and peacetime deployment.
Improves:
- Mobility
- Response time
- Operational readiness
Marks a doctrinal shift towards greater deterrent posture.

MIRV (Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle)

Allows one missile to deliver multiple warheads to different targets.
Increases:
- Strike capability
- Missile defence penetration

Key Missile Developments

Agni-P (Prime):
- Range: 1,000–2,000 km
- Features: Next-gen, canisterised, regional deterrence and precision strike.
Agni-5 with MIRV (Tested under Mission Divyastra):
- Range: >5,000 km
- Capability: Can hit multiple targets with a single launch.

Nuclear Trends: China & Pakistan

Pakistan

Developing new delivery platforms
Increasing fissile material stockpile
Indications of planned expansion over the next decade

China

Adding ~100 nuclear warheads/year since 2023
Projected stockpile:
- 1,000 warheads by 2032–33
- 1,500 by 2035
Could achieve ICBM parity with US/Russia by 2030
Possibly storing warheads on missiles during peacetime (like US/Russia)

Global Nuclear Landscape (as of Jan 2025)

Total warheads: 12,241
Military stockpiles: 9,614
Operationally deployed: 3,912

Trend Reversal

Post–Cold War: Disarmament trend
Now: Slowing dismantlement, increasing deployments

Modernisation & Arms Control Concerns

All 9 nuclear-armed states (US, Russia, UK, France, China, India, Pakistan, Israel, North Korea) are upgrading their arsenals.
SIPRI Warning:
- Erosion of arms control agreements
- Rising risk of a new nuclear arms race
- Increasing role of nuclear weapons in national security doctrines

Key Institutions & Treaties

SIPRI: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute; monitors global armaments.
NPT (Non-Proliferation Treaty):
- India, Pakistan, Israel: Non-signatories
- US, Russia, China, UK, France: Recognised Nuclear Weapon States (NWS)
Fissile Material: Enriched uranium/plutonium used in nuclear weapons.