What was the ‘Smiling Buddha’ operation that took place on May 18?

*Paromita Das
The 18th of May is a special day in India. It is associated with a development that has given the country great pride. So, what exactly is it?

How India conducted its first nuclear test in Pokhran with success
India conducted the nuclear test in Pokhran after nearly two years of planning. In September 1972, Indira Gandhi authorised scientists at BARC to detonate an indigenously designed nuclear device.

On Tuesday, India will mark the 47th anniversary of its first nuclear test in Pokhran, Rajasthan. It established India as a nuclear power.

The test, codenamed ‘Smiling Buddha,’ took place on May 18, 1974. Because the test was held on Buddha Purnima that year, the name was chosen. Raja Ramanna, the director of India’s premier nuclear research institute, Bhabha Atomic Research Center (BARC), told Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, “The Buddha has finally smiled.”

It was the first confirmed nuclear test conducted by a country that was not a permanent member of the UN Security Council (UNSC).

Though the exact yield of the device detonated at Pokhran is unknown, it is estimated to be between 8 and 12 Kilotons of TNT. The highlight of the test was India’s ability to avoid detection by the US and other intelligence agencies.

The country was also subjected to a slew of sanctions from countries such as the United States, which warned that such tests could lead to nuclear proliferation.

It took India nearly two years to prepare for this test. In September 1972, Indira Gandhi authorised scientists at BARC to detonate an indigenously designed nuclear device.
After 1974, India conducted nuclear tests at the same location (dubbed the Pokhran-II tests) in 1998, during the tenure of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. In May 1998, five nuclear explosions were conducted at Pokhran. Every year on May 11, National Technology Day commemorates the anniversary of the Pokhran-II tests.

Last year, on the anniversary of the 1974 Pokhran tests, India was hit by the extremely powerful cyclonic storm Amphan, which hit the coasts of West Bengal and Bangladesh. This year, the country is dealing with the aftermath of Cyclone Tauktae, which has wreaked havoc on states along its western coast.
Thousands of people have been evacuated from coastal areas in Maharashtra and Gujarat. The Center is coordinating rescue and relief efforts with state governments affected by the cyclone.