India’s Upper House Approves Nonproliferation Bill

Legislation that passed India’s upper house of parliament Friday banning the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction would not impair the country’s ability to defend itself, said Foreign Minister Natwar Singh (see GSN, May 13).

“India is committed to safeguarding its security as a nuclear-weapon state and to deepen its autonomous scientific and technical capability for meeting our security imperatives as well as our developmental goals,” Singh said.

“The bill does not seek to check development of missile technology but prevent leakage of this technology,” he added. “As a responsible nation, India has never passed on its proven technological capabilities to any one.”

Indian President Abdul Kalam must sign the bill for it to become law (Agence France-Presse/The Peninsula, May 13).

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