'India has very tight system to protect n-assets'

New Delhi, March 24 (IANS) India has a 'very tight sytem' in place to protect its nuclear assets and there is no need to augment this with a specialised force, official sources said Saturday. At the same time, the security of Pakistan's nuclear assets is a matter of concern, they added.

'We have a very tight system in place. Therefore, please don't assume what you don't know doesn't exist,' the sources said in response to a question whether the government was mulling a specialised Nuclear Security Force as the Central Industrial Security Force, which currently guards civilian nuclear assets was stretched thin due to the diverse tasks it has to perform.

'Our material is very secure. You can take it from me that we are very, very tight,' the sources said.

Speaking about the situation in Pakistan and the security of its nuclear assets, the sources said there was cause for concern. 'From what we are seeing in Pakistan, there is a problem. There are concerns over security,' the sources said.

In this context, the sources noted that the March 26-27 Nuclear Safety Summit at Seoul was one of the forums to address such concerns.

'The threat of nuclear terrorism is very real. There is a big concern on security if nuclear weapons fall into the wrong hands. Events like the Nuclear Security Summit can help,' the sources said.