Launched in the mid-1980s, the ATV project is now headed by Vice Admiral B Kanan whose wife Nirmala, incidentally, is the younger sister of Indian Ambassador to China and Foreign Secretary-designate Nirupama Rao. The submarine is going to be tested on India’s eastern seaboard and earlier plans of moving it to Karwar in Goa have been shelved for the time being. Instead, the first of the two Russian Akula class nuclear submarines that India is taking on lease will be deployed on the western seaboard.

The Chakra class submarine bridges a key gap in India’s minimum nuclear deterrence as the armed forces already have platforms for nuclear weapon delivery from sky and land through proven intermediate range nuclear missiles and aircraft-borne bombs.

The need for a nuclear submarine was felt by New Delhi as Beijing is moving towards a sea-based doctrine and already has one Xia class and two Jin class nuclear submarines with JL-1 and 2 series submarine-launched nuclear missiles. Each of these submarines carries up to 12 JL-1 or 2 strategic missiles. Even Pakistan has eight tactical submarines that have deep sea diving capability with advanced air propulsion and Harpoon missiles.