Nuclear armament, despite its dangers and the threat of extinction to the whole world, has been escalated to a stage, when even a small part of its weaponry can destroy the whole planet. Conventional arms and the armed forces of the world have attained astronomical proportion and numbers. Even without nuclear armament, we have witnessed during the last war what a scale of destruction the clash of these arms and forces can bring about. We, in India, believe that this Special Session of UN General Assembly of Disarmament has not met a day too soon and, I bring to this august assembly the greetings and good wishes of the peaceloving people of India.

Our sages long ago envisaged an ideal, which is in the Vedic benediction:

May all people be happy, 
May all people be without jealousies; 
May all people perceive the good 
May no one get sorrow and misery.

It is this ennobling vision of the world of happiness and contentment, which I have always borne within me ever since I came in contact with the philosophy and personality of Mahatma Gandhi. It is a vision, which we all should cherish and should strive to turn into a reality, not in the distant future but in our own time.

The destructive potential of modem weapons used during the Second World War made the world fearful of war and crave for peace. At such a moment of realization was the United Nations founded. Almost simultaneously, India achieved freedom through nonviolent means under the unique leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, which paved the way for the peaceful liberation of most of the nations from the colonial domination during the last three decades. I believe that the time is propitious and the prospects of banishing war at present are brighter than at any time before.

It is a sad thought that since times Immemorial, the history of societies has always been interspersed with the history of wars. It is even sadder to reflect that, far from being condemned, the warlike attributes and image of conquering heroes have been exalted and glorified. War had been an accepted instrument of advancing national interests in the past, but it no longer commands the same conventional legitimacy.

The current earnest quest for peace, however, seems to stem from fear of total annihilation. It is my firm conviction that fear is the worst, everlasting and demoralizing influence on man. It should not, therefore, be the fear of war but the love of peace, which should rule our conduct.

Peace is not merely cessation of war, but a positive sense of identification with and concern for others. Instead of war, peace must abide in the minds of men. Little come of working for peace without a deep conviction on in peace alone there is human fulfillment and happiness but even if the goal appears distant it is well worth striving for, because movement in this direction ' reduces the causes of conflict. If we all seek peace, the world will one day become a real human family embodied in our ancient saying: "The whole world is one family".

The noblest of ends cannot but be debased by resort to means to achieve them. Gandhiji's message of n," violence and the innovative instrument of Satyagraha that he gave us have great relevance in our predicament we grope for a way out of the present impasse.

If we comprehend the unique and explosive crisis collectively encounter, we must move toward disarmament through a solemn resolve to outlaw war and settle disputes through the beneficent process of negotiations. So long as war is regarded as legitimate disarmament will be a chimerical illusion.

Many wars have been fought in the past because nations were ruled by the desire to acquire power and domination or material goods from others. But after every major human holocaust. In the working of these institutions, some countries have become involved and have involved others in power politics. The much-vaunted nuclear deterrent has failed to put an end to the arms race. In fact, it has vastly it has stimulated further competition in destructive weaponry. The commitment to disarmament must be total and without any reservation.

In this context, I should like to refer to the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. India is among those who have not signed this Treaty. There has been considerable misunderstanding of our motives. To remove these, I should like to declare that we yield to none in our commitment to comprehensive disarmament. We are the only country, which has pledged not to manufacture or acquire nuclear weapons even if the rest of the world did so. I, solemnly reiterate that pledge before this august Assembly. In fact, we have gone further and abjured nuclear explosions even for peaceful purposes. We ask from others no more than the selfrestraint we impose upon ourselves. But our objection to the Treaty is because it is so patently discriminatory. It makes an invidious distinction between countries having nuclear weaponry and those devoted to the pursuit of nuclear research and technology entirely for peaceful purposes.

Even though USSR and USA, have been active between themselves and with others, they have yet to provide a basis on which general agreements on the several aspects of disarmament could be reached. I am sure, they recognize this and it is the general view that the onus for finding the solution to the problems connected with nuclear disarmament lie heavily on them. In the discharge of that responsibility, suspicion and fear can have no place. This is not a matter of ideology or of narrow national interests but of an assurance against the tragedy that the erosion of such a trust may entail and which may engulf the whole world. It is in this sense that we regard nuclear armament as  a threat to the very survival of humanity.

I am glad that the distinguished Presidents of the USA and the USSR have expressed their determination to expeditiously the negotiations for the elimination o testing of all nuclear devices, whether for development military purposes, and for the SALT II Agreement.

Certain other agreements, as for instance the banning of radiological weapons, are in the offing. It is in this that President Carter solemnly declared last year that United States will not use nuclear weapons except in defence. I am also happy that President Brezhnev spoken of the replacement of the balance of terror by balance of trust. The problem of disarmament particularly in the nuclear field, cannot be solved system of checks and balances devised as a result bargaining. It can only be solved in a total manner keeping in view the whole of the globe and not the regions into which, presumably as a matter of POW convenience or strategy, some countries seek compartmentalize the world. It is idle to talk of regional nuclear free zones when there would still be zones could continue to be endangered by nuclear weapons. We are convinced that there cannot be a limited approach the question of freedom from nuclear threats and d but the whole world should be declared a nuclear free

We have, to take decisive steps to turn the minds of nations away from violence as an insurance of safety security, and take them towards nonviolence Satyagraha as means of resisting wrong.

Although I have urged and will continue to urge that ultimate solution lies in the general acceptance of philosophy and practice of nonviolence, I believe Gandhiji that one step is enough for me to start with that step must mean abjuring of violence as an instrument of national policy and a substantial reduction within a prescribed time schedule in the weapons and forces of violence.

That first step in my view must consist of-
 

(1) A declaration that utilization of nuclear technology for military purposes Including research in weapon technology must be outlawed;

(2) Qualitative and quantitative limitations on nuclear armament and immediate freezing of the present stockpile under international inspection.

(3) Formulation of a timebound program  not exceeding a decade  for gradual reduction of the stockpile with a view to achieving total elimination of all nuclear weapons; and

(4) Comprehensive test ban treaty with provision for safeguards to prevent a breach of the treaty, which in my view can only be through independent inspection.

For initiating a program of disarmament in the conventional field, we should not wait until nuclear disarmament is completed. We should begin efforts to work out an agreement on disarmament and drastic reduction of armed strength in the conventional field.

Mr. President, the resources of the world we live in are too precious to be wasted on destruction. Millions around the globe suffer from want, from malnutrition, from underdevelopment and from a despair about today and tomorrow. We have misused the world's wealth far too long. Let us now resolve to harness science and statesmanship to the cause of the welfare and happiness of mankind. Let us send out from here a message of succor and relief to the poor, to the infirm, to the undernourished and enable them to draw an assurance that a better world will be theirs.

It is evident that no scheme of global peace disarmament can last unless it is linked with the creation of an equitable world economic order. The nuclear and their close allies are also those who dominate world's economy and seek to manage it to their advantage. Their military and economic strength support and reinforce each other. The poorer countries have to face not only the threat of domination but also the d of a fair return for their produce and their labour. Disarmament could and should serve the larger ameliorating the economic injustice and deprivation to which twothirds of humanity is subject today.

Even if a small portion of the one billion dollars a day that are now spent on armament could be diverted to the benevolent service of mankind through the spread of irrigation, the feeding of the undernourished, to educating the unlettered, to curing and ministering to the sick and infirm in all countries, to purifying the world's air and water, and to enlarging the understanding of other people's cultures, it would bring the idea of a brave new world nearer achievement. I suggest that this Assembly recommend the setting up of a fund, which will carry out studies in disarmament and nonviolence and find out ways and means of replacing bombs and bullets by bread and books. Working for abolition of war is a historical necessity, not also a moral imperative, but a human duty. It is a plain matter of enlightened self-interest since it is indissolubly linked with our very survival.

If all this power of destruction came from the Intellect, surely that same intellect can create something more compassionate and benevolent.

In one of our ancient books - the Kathopanishad -there Is a parable of a boy of tender years who carries on a dialogue with the God of Death who is also the God of Justice. The God offers the boy all the riches, all the pleasures and all the glory there can be. But Nachiketa, the boy, wants to know the nature of life and death and Immortality. God parts with the mystery, but like all mysteries, it is not so mysterious. Victory over death, he says, comes from self-control. Likening the body to a chariot, the mind to reins, the senses to horses, and the objects of the senses to roads, he adds:

"He who has no understanding and whose mind is never firmly held, his senses are unmanageable, like vicious horses of a chariot. But he who has understanding and whose mind is always firmly held, his senses are under control like good horses of a chariot".

What is true of the Individual is true of the world community. Man, who has invented these engines of destruction, is also filled with a desire for immortality. At this moment, death and life are poised as on a razor's edge. It is for us to choose what we will. Let us choose life. It is for this assembly, representing the collective wisdom of mankind, to launch a movement in the conscience of men and embark on the great adventure of survival with the determination not to compromise with truth.