New Delhi: In a significant statement, President A P J Abdul Kalam on November 14 said that despite "no first use" policy, India will use nuclear weapons when peace is threatened and some other country uses against it.

"We have taken a decision that India will not use nuclear weapons first but when peace is threatened and somebody else uses it, India will use it for defending the country," he said replying to a question from a student how can nuclear weapon be used for peace.

Maintaining that all around nations have nuclear weapons, Kalam said, "when two of our neighbours have got nuclear weapons, naturally for India, to protect peace, we have to have it."

The President mingled with the children answering questions, which ranged from his vision to make India a developed nation to how to stop brain drain and development of North East.

A missile technologist, Kalam appeared like a teacher for sometime when he went to the big slide screen to explain his "Vision for India".

A loud applause reverberated in the huge hall at the Vigyan Bhavan when acclaimed music director A R Rehman composed a song based on Kalam's "Ignited Minds" which was sung by a group of children.

Recalling that he had visited several states after he became President, Kalam said that one question that he often encountered was how to make a "secure, prosperous and peaceful India. "It is possible. If their (children) minds are ignited, it will be very powerful".

Replying to another question from a youngster whether the government could use the funds spent on testing missiles in Chandipur for the poor, the President said that the spending was not much and it was for the Defence and security of the country which were important.

Describing some of the questions from the students as "fantastic" and "beautiful", he disagreed with a young questioner that there was a brain drain towards multinationals and there was lack of incentives in the government sector for the youth.

"Indian companies should become multinationals. There are IT companies in the country. I don't believe brain drain continues. India produces 200,000 engineers and 100,000 scientists. 15,000 or 20,000 people leaving does not harm the country," he said.

Citing a large number of Indians and Chinese working in Silicon Valley, the President said, "movement in the global world is nothing wrong".

Stating that today he had completed his mission of interacting with 1,00,000 school children across the length and breadth of the country, Kalam said that some children want to see India a developed nation, some want to work for the unity of minds and some others want to serve the nation like electron.

"I feel when young minds are ignited, it will be a powerful resource.... Behind failure there may be several reasons but behind success, there is hard work," he said.

PTI