---
title: "India’s Nuclear Warhead Stockpile Estimated at Up to 190, Says US Think Tank"
english_title: " India’s Nuclear Warhead Stockpile Estimated at Up to 190, US Think Tank Says"
publisher: "Truevision English News"
canonical_url: "https://english.truevisionnews.com/news/382065/india-nuclear-warhead-stockpile-190-us-think-tank"
published_at: "2026-09-11T05:43:00+05:30"
category: "International"
language: "en"
image: "https://cf.zdn.im/img/truevisionnews.com/0/image-uploads/6aa3480e97bd7_india-nuclear-warhead-stockpile-190-us-think-tank.jpg"
keywords: ["India nuclear warheads", "India nuclear arsenal", "nuclear weapons 2026", "Federation of American Scientists", "nuclear stockpile", "nuclear deterrence"]
---

# India’s Nuclear Warhead Stockpile Estimated at Up to 190, Says US Think Tank

> **Lead Summary:** **New Delhi: **India may have assembled up to 190 nuclear warheads, including at least 30 additional warheads for new missiles under production, taking the estimated total from 160 warheads for operational launchers to 190, according to a US nonprofit policy think tank.

## Article Content

**New Delhi: **India may have assembled up to 190 nuclear warheads, including at least 30 additional warheads for new missiles under production, taking the estimated total from 160 warheads for operational launchers to 190, according to a US nonprofit policy think tank.

The assessment was made in an article titled ‘India’s Nuclear Weapons – 2026’, published on Wednesday. The report said India continues to modernise its nuclear arsenal, with several new weapon systems fielded in recent years and more under development to complement or replace existing nuclear-capable aircraft, land-based delivery systems and sea-based systems.

According to the report, India may have produced enough military plutonium for between 140 and 225 nuclear warheads and might have assembled up to 190. It also estimated that the country’s warhead stockpile is likely to increase further as more weapon systems remain under development.

The Nuclear Notebook was researched and written by staff of the Federation of American Scientists’ Nuclear Information Project, including director Hans M Kristensen, associate director Matt Korda, research and project manager Mackenzie Knight-Boyle, and senior research associate Eliana Johns.

The report estimated that India currently operates nine different nuclear-capable systems: two aircraft, six land-based ballistic missiles and one sea-based ballistic missile. At least two additional systems are in development and nearing completion and are expected, according to the report, to be fielded with the armed forces within one or a few years.

As India does not publish figures for its nuclear weapon stockpile, the report said its analysis and estimates were based on a combination of open sources. These include state-originating data such as government statements and declassified documents, non-state sources including media reports, think tank analyses and industry publications, as well as commercial satellite imagery.

The report said India is one of only a handful of countries believed to be producing both highly enriched uranium (HEU) and weapons-grade plutonium. It said India’s HEU production is largely assumed to be focused on producing fuel for its growing number of nuclear-powered vessels and submarines.

According to the report, India’s source of weapons-grade plutonium has been the aging 100-megawatt (MWt) Dhruva plutonium production reactor at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre complex near Mumbai, along with the CIRUS reactor at the same location until 2010.

> The report further said that, after more than a decade of delays, India’s new 500-MWt Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) at the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research near Kalpakkam reached first criticality in April 2026. It said the reactor is fuelled by a stockpile of reactor-grade plutonium separated from India’s first-generation power reactors and irradiates a “blanket” of uranium or thorium to produce Plutonium-239 and Uranium-233.

If operated at 80% efficiency, the report said, the PFBR could hypothetically produce an estimated 140 kg of Plutonium-239 annually, which would be sufficient for up to 35 nuclear warheads.

Several more fast breeder reactors are planned, including two at the pre-planning stage, FBR-1 and FBR-2, which are to be located adjacent to the PFBR at Kalpakkam. The report said that if successfully operated, these breeder reactors could potentially increase significantly the amount of plutonium available for India’s nuclear warhead stockpile.

As of the beginning of 2026, the International Panel on Fissile Materials estimated that India had produced approximately 730 kg, plus or minus about 170 kg, of weapons-grade plutonium. Assuming 4 kg of plutonium per warhead, the report said this would theoretically be enough for between 140 and 225 nuclear warheads. However, it noted that the calculation involved several uncertainties and caveats.

The report also said it was unlikely that India had used all its plutonium to produce warheads and that some may have been kept in reserve. It added that the size of India’s nuclear stockpile also depends on the number and types of launchers capable of delivering the weapons, as it is unlikely that the country would produce significantly more warheads than its systems can launch.

> The Modi government recently told Parliament that India is committed to maintaining credible minimum deterrence and a posture of “no first use” of nuclear weapons.According to a recent SIPRI report, Pakistan has an estimated stockpile of approximately 170 nuclear warheads, compared with India’s estimated 170 nuclear warheads.

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