Click to play videoNew Delhi: India is beefing up its nuclear second strike capability.
On Wednesday, it revealed a new generation ballistic missile, Shaurya, which is aimed at evading enemy detection.
This 600-km range sub-surface weapon is a variant of the undersea K-15, widely considered India's biggest missile breakthrough.
The missile which is meant to be fired from underground silos will give India more options to hit back, in case it is attacked with nuclear weapons.
The Shaurya is capable of carrying a 1-ton nuclear bomb, is a quick-reaction missile fired from a canister.
This seems a throwback to the Cold War years and is in sharp contrast to other nuclear missiles which have mobile launchers.
However, scientists insist that this will increase India's options for a second strike capability which is critical in view of its nuclear weapons policy of No First Use.
Chief Controller, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) Dr W Selvamurthy says, "When you talk of second strike capability, it means that when the mobile moves on surface whether on rail or on road, it will easily be detected by either intelligence or from the satellite imaging, but in this case, if you keep it either underwater or underground, certainly you won't be able to detect it. It is very difficult to detect."
It is likely that it will replace the 8.5-metre-long Prithvi short-range missiles.
The game of nuclear deterrence has now moved to ensuring survivability of weapons and the missile race show no signs of ending.
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