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Difficulty: MediumDefense and Nuclear Technology

Regarding India's naval nuclear propulsion and submarine-launched ballistic missile capabilities within its nuclear triad, analyze the following assertions:

Statement I: INS Arihant is powered by an indigenously developed pressurized light-water reactor using enriched uranium fuel.
Statement II: The K-15 (Sagarika) missile is an intercontinental ballistic missile with a operational strike range exceeding 5,000 km5,000\text{ km}.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?

  1. Only Statement IAnswer
  2. B
    Only Statement II
  3. C
    Both Statement I and Statement II
  4. D
    Neither Statement I nor Statement II

Answer

Only Statement I is correct.
The statement asserting that INS Arihant uses a pressurized light-water reactor with enriched uranium is factually correct. The statement claiming K-15 Sagarika has a range over 5,000 km is incorrect, as its actual range is approximately 750 km.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Examine the propulsion reactor specifications of INS Arihant.
INS Arihant is powered by a compact 83 MW83\text{ MW} Pressurized Light Water Reactor (PWR) developed by BARC, which uses enriched uranium fuel.
Light water reactors are standard for marine propulsion applications requiring compact reactors.
2
Evaluate the missile designation and operational range of K-15 (Sagarika).
The K-15 Sagarika is a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) with an effective strike range of around 750 km750\text{ km}, whereas long-range SLBM capabilities are provided by missiles like K-4 (3,500 km3,500\text{ km}).
Attributing an intercontinental range (>5,000 km>5,000\text{ km}) to K-15 is an error in missile range categorization.

Key Concept

Naval Nuclear Propulsion and Submarine Launched Ballistic Missiles (SLBM)
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Topics

Defense and Nuclear Technology

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