Shehar Bano Khan
Without understanding the socio-developmental aspects of becoming a nuclear state, Pakistan is ignorantly rejoicing Youm-e-Takbeer, an event ennobled through use of a religious citation. On May 28, 1998, Pakistan became a nuclear state, proudly parenting an apocalyptic device likely (and hopefully) to remain inert in the coming decades.
Its combatant value is no more than a Gong Bell used as a caution against its neighbour every time there is a movement on the eastern front. It has neither upgraded Pakistan’s threadbare reputation as a rent economy subsisting on external financial help nor has it raised its Human Development Index (HDI). “Pakistan’s economic freedom score is 51.7, making its economy the 152nd freest in the 2021 Index. Its overall score has decreased by 3.1 points, primarily because of a decline in fiscal health. Pakistan is ranked 34th among 40 countries in the Asia–Pacific region, and its overall score is below the regional and world averages.” (2021 Index of Economic Freedom: https://www.heritage.org/index/)
Do we understand what that means? No. Will we continue to rejoice? Yes, of course! The Youm-e-Takbir appellation was conferred to guarantee an unfailing celebratory response from the people to whom the contrary would be an alliance with the infidels.
It matters not how the birth of the Gong Bell is meant, at least theoretically, to efface humans from this region, neither does it matter that Pakistan spends almost $1billion dollars each year on nurturing 160 nuclear weapons. According to The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) 2019 report, Pakistan spent 10 per cent of its 2019 military budget on nuclear weapons.
“Analysts in the past decade have estimated that Pakistan spends about ten per cent of its total military spending on nuclear arsenal, which appeared to be confirmed by a parliamentary report in 2016 revealing that Pakistan spent 9.8 per cent of its official military budget on nuclear weapons that year. Ten per cent of Pakistan’s 2019 military spending ($10.256 billion) is $1 billion.” (Enough is Enough”2019 Global Nuclear Weapons Spending) — PAK DESTINY
Author Shehar Bano Khan is a journalist and a research-based writer, specialising in interrogating the banal
