Anil Kakodkar, Director, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), on Thursday said that India could now build minimum credible deterrence around the nuclear devices tested in Pokharan last year. He was speaking to mediapersons before attending the convocation ceremony of 96th course of National Defence Academy at Khadakwasla.

``We have demonstrated the perfect working of five devices. We now have the capability of very robust systems for thermonuclear devices, sub-kiloton device and the standard fissile device, tested successfully last year,'' Kakodkar said on India's nuclear programme after the tests.

On the strength of India's nuclear arms development programme vis-a-vis Pakistan,Kakodkar said,``We are confident that whatever will be done, will be perfect...We have not copied anybody's design, we have developed our nuclear devices ingeniously.'' Imitations can never make you a leader, he added.

In his address at the convocation, Kakodkar described India's nuclear weapon programme ``as a spin-off because it became inevitable for our security.'' By adopting innovative approach one can often surpass competitors of adversaries with much lesser resources. We should realise that this in fact is the key to success in making faster progress in relative terms in all spheres, be it economic activity or military activity, he added.

On India's nuclear reactor programme, Kakodkar said, the country, in coming years will have an advanced heavy water reactor for 200 MW power generation. It would be the first of its kind in the world which will use thorium as a nuclear fuel for power generation, he said.

``We have gone through exercises of developing feasibility design of the reactor. Right nowwork is on the detailed engineering design and engineering development plan,'' he said. By the end of 9th Plan we should be in a position to build the reactor, he added. He said a pilot version thermal reactor of 30 kilo watt capacity was being successfully operated by BARC using thorium.

Of the 281 cadets of the 96th course, 195 were conferred with a degree in science and 86 in social science by Jawaharlal Nehru University. Cadet Sumeet Gard stood first in the science stream scoring a cumulative grade point average of 8.8 - the highest score by any cadet in the history of academy. Cadet Chandra Vijay Singh Mankotia stood first in social science stream.