'Western researchers are raising doubts over whether India's hydrogen bomb worked at all'

Deputy Editor Raj Chengappa: on the nuclear trailThe echo of India's nuclear test refuses to die. Whether we like it or not, the bomb continues to dominate our environment, to influence our thinking. A few years ago the acronym CTBT would have been meaningless to us.Now even at casual cocktail parties people pontificate over whether we should sign it or not. Fact is, we've all suddenly become nuclear literate.Part of this growing awareness includes a questioning. Did the tests really succeed? Is there an independent mechanism to verify scientists' claims? No longer can the Atomic Energy Department and the Defence Research and Development Organisation refuse to part with information on grounds of national interest. They are accountable. Especially in an age where foreign scientists, armed with satellite pictures and seismological information, independently track and assess India's nuclear tests. And their research findings so far are at great variance with Indian claims. Quite simply, as our cover story explains, western researchers are raising doubts over whether India's hydrogen bomb worked at all. Did the test fail? To get an accurate answer, Deputy Editor Raj Chengappa, who has done several of our cover stories on the nuclear question, was given rare access to key scientists at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre in Trombay who were involved with the Pokhran II explosions. .preferred-source-banner{ margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;}Apart from being allowed to look at the major findings and results of the tests, Chengappa was also granted an exclusive interview with S.K. Sikka, who led the team that made the physics designs of India's nuclear devices. Says Chengappa: "Top scientists yearn for peer review and acceptance. And it is usually frustrating for them to be unable to discuss their results freely because of valid defence considerations."So was the H-bomb a dud? Read the story.Published By: AtMigration Published On: Oct 12, 1998--- ENDS ---

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'Western researchers are raising doubts over whether India's hydrogen bomb worked at all'

The echo of India's nuclear test refuses to die. Whether we like it or not, the bomb continues to dominate our environment, to influence our thinking. A few years ago the acronym CTBT would have been meaningless to us.

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