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Coordinates: 31°57′N 72°42′E / 31.950°N 72.700°E / 31.950; 72.700
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The Wah Group had indigenously developed the explosive [[HMX]] (His Majesty’s Explosive), which was used to trigger the device. The HMX nuclear device was successfully developed and tested by DTD led by [[Hafeez Qureshi]].<ref name="Defence Journal (The Nation)"/> The successful [[Cold fission|cold fission test]] was led and supervised by renowned physicist dr. [[Ishfaq Ahmad]], and it was witnessed by PAEC chairman [[Munir Ahmad Khan]], [[Lieutenant-General]] [[Zahid Ali Akbar Khan]], [[Air-Vice Marshal]] ([[Major-General]]) [[Michael John O'Brian]], [[Khalid Mahmud Arif|General Khalid Mahmud Arif]], and then-[[Chairman of Senate|Chairman]] of [[Senate of Pakistan]], [[Ghulam Ishaq Khan]]<ref>name="The Nation 2009">"Pakistan Became a Nuclear State in 1983-Dr. Samar", The Nation,(Islamabad) May 2, 2003 accessed on August 6, 2009</ref>.
The Wah Group had indigenously developed the explosive [[HMX]] (His Majesty’s Explosive), which was used to trigger the device. The HMX nuclear device was successfully developed and tested by DTD led by [[Hafeez Qureshi]].<ref name="Defence Journal (The Nation)"/> The successful [[Cold fission|cold fission test]] was led and supervised by renowned physicist dr. [[Ishfaq Ahmad]], and it was witnessed by PAEC chairman [[Munir Ahmad Khan]], [[Lieutenant-General]] [[Zahid Ali Akbar Khan]], [[Air-Vice Marshal]] ([[Major-General]]) [[Michael John O'Brian]], [[Khalid Mahmud Arif|General Khalid Mahmud Arif]], and then-[[Chairman of Senate|Chairman]] of [[Senate of Pakistan]], [[Ghulam Ishaq Khan]]<ref>name="The Nation 2009">"Pakistan Became a Nuclear State in 1983-Dr. Samar", The Nation,(Islamabad) May 2, 2003 accessed on August 6, 2009</ref>.

==Aftermath==

The need to improve and perfect the design of first nuclear device required constant testing. As a result, between 1983 and 1990, the Wah Group conducted more than 24 cold tests of the nuclear device at Kirana Hills with the help of mobile diagnostic equipment.<ref name="Defence Journal (The Nation)"/> These tests were carried out in 24 [[Horizontal shaft impactor|horizontal-shaft]] designated weapon-testing laboratories measuring 100-150 feet in length which were bored inside the Kirana Hills.<ref name="Defence Journal (The Nation)"/> Later due to excessive US intelligence and satellite focus on the Kirana Hills site, it was abandoned and the WTL-I was shifted to the Kala-Chitta Range.<ref name="Defence Journal (The Nation)"/>


==Development and the test teams==
==Development and the test teams==

Revision as of 09:05, 30 July 2011

The Kirana Hills, also known as Kirana Hills Range is a difficult range of rocky mountains in Pakistan in the central Punjab Province districts of Sargodha and Jhang running across approximately 40 miles north-west in the region. It is the last formation of hills in geographic history, and they are said to be the kind of hills found in Aravalli series Rajasthan.

File:Kohe Kirana.jpg
An aerial view of the Kohe Kirana.

It is quoted by Hindus religious scholars that this series was formed when Hanumanji picked up some rocks from Himalays to fight with Ravana and some pieces of rocks dropped from his hands which formed this series of mountains. The highest peak is about 980 feet and its name is Koh-e-Kirana. The region is generally known as "Black Mountains" by locals because the train is generally dark brown of either black with dense but small growth of Pinophyta in the region that blocked out most of the light inside the forest. The civil population in the region has avoided to go in the region as the wild-life is presently and largely seen. The Wild boar and other wild animals are commonly seen in the region.

Because of its renown, during 1970s till 1980s, the Kirana Hills were the apex region research testing region of Pakistan Armed Forces. Under General Zahid Ali Akbar, director of the Project-706, the Corps of Engineers built secret and in-depth testing laboratories region, completely unknown to the outside world. Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) conducted and carried cold-tests of several nuclear weapons with large representations included from the Air Force and Army.

Nuclear Test Site

A mountain of Kirana Range in the outskirts of Rabwah.

The work building the weapon laboratories at this region was initiated by Munir Ahmad Khan, as technical director, and Major-General Zahid Ali Akbar, as Military director of the Civil engineers Corps.[1] Started in 1979, the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission and Corps of Engineers finished the construction of the weapon-testing laboratories in 1983, and it was named as Kirana Atomic Test Site (KATS).[2] The tunnels and weapon-testing laboratories were reported as have been bored after the Chagai Nuclear Test Site (CNTS).[2] As CNTS, the tunnels and weapons-testing laboratories at Kirana Hills had been bored and then sealed and this task was also undertaken by SDW.[2]

Special Development Works

The "Special Development Works", codename SDW, was a special military unit of renowned Pakistan military scientists and engineers founded by Brigadier-General Muhammad Sarfaraz in 1977.[2] The SDW was responsible for the construction of the nuclear test sites and the military scientists of the SDW had closely worked with the PAEC's DTD scientists in the development of nuclear device.[2] The SDW was later commanded by Air Vice-Marshal (Major-General) Michael John O'Brian who was designated as Director-General.[2] Meanwhile, Major-General Zahid Ali Akbar, director of Engineering Research Laboratories, went on to build the weapon-testing infrastructure under the guidance of Munir Ahmad Khan.[2] The SDW consisted of small but highly intelligence military scientists and engineers who took this daring task under Major-General O'Brian to built the weapon-testing facility in the region that is generally closed to public due to its high-rate of human disappearance and wild-life.[2]

Kirana Hills on Sargodha Fasisalabad Highway.

Preparations

The weapon-testing laboratories were carefully prepared and established by SDW and PAEC.[3] Because of the sensitivity, the construction would be started at night and continued until dawn.[3] The guards would be heavily armed and highly alert while performing their duties. This was done to avoid the American satellites to pick up the advancement and to avoid alerting the civil population inhabitant in the area.[3] Prior to the first test being carried out, the PAEC sent its scientists from Radiation Physics Division (RPD) under dr. Hameed Ahmad Khan, and Army sent its medical staff members, who specialized in nuclear medicines, under the command of female officer Major Laila Ahsan Dani from Army Medical Corps (AMC).[3] Later, the Naval Medical Branch, under Lieutanent John Edres and Air Force Medical Response (AFMR) under Captain Shahid Ahmad also joined this clandestine operation directly reporting the AMC's Commanding officer Major Laila Ahsan Dani.[3] The teams were sent to de-seal, open and clean the tunnels and to make sure the tunnels were clear of the wild boars that are found in abundance in the Sargodha region.[3] The damage which these wild boars could do to men and equipment, computer facilities, and laboratories.[3]

The Tests

After the preparations were done and tunnels were cleared out, the RPD along with their Military units joined the PAEC's Diagnostic Team, under dr. Samar Mubarakmand who arrived on the scene with trailers fitted with computers and diagnostic equipment.[4] They were followed by Wah Group Scientists under dr. Zaman Shaikh and DTD under Hafeez Qureshi, with the nuclear device in sub assembly form. The device was placed in the weapon-testing laboratory-I (WTL-I).[4] monitoring system was set up with around 20 cables linking various parts of the device with oscillators in diagnostic vans parked near the Kirana Hills.[4] The Wah Group, under chemical engineer Dr. Shaikh, indigenously developed the explosive under codename HMX (His Majesty’s Explosive) which was used to trigger the device.[4]

The device was tested using the push-button technique set in vintage style. The first test was to see whether the triggering mechanism created the necessary neutrons which would start a [[Nuclear chain reaction|fission chain-reaction] in the actual device.[4] However, when the button was pushed, most of the wires connecting the device to the oscillators were severed due to errors committed in the preparation of the cables.[4] At first, it was thought that the device had malfunctioned but closer scrutiny of two of the oscillators confirmed that the neutrons had indeed come out and a chain-reaction had taken place.[4]

Test teams and development

The series of 24 different cold tests were conducted by Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission led by Chairman Munir Ahmad Khan.[4] This secret nuclear operation was called Kirana-I, and it was came in effect under extreme secrecy.[5] The test team included Dr. Ishfaq Ahmad, the Member (Technical), PAEC, Mr. Muhammad Hafeez Qureshi, head of the Directorate of Technical Development, PAEC, Dr. Zaman Sheikh, head of the Wah Group (PAEC), Dr. Naeem Ahmad Khan - Head of Radiation and Isotope Applications Division (PAEC), Dr. Masud Ahmad - head of Theoretical Physics Group (TPG). and Dr. Samar Mubarakmand, the Diagnostic Group (PAEC).[5]

The tunnels at Kirana Hills, Sargodha, are reported to have been bored after the Chagai nuclear test sites, it is widely believed that the tunnels were constructed sometime between 1979 and 1983. As in Chagai, the tunnels at Kirana Hills had been bored and then sealed and this task was also undertaken by PAEC's DTD[4].

As a result, between 1983 and 1990, the PAEC's Wah Group and DTD conducted more than 24 cold tests of the nuclear device at Kirana Hills with the help of mobile diagnostic equipment.[5] These tests were carried out in 24 tunnels measuring 100–150 feet in length which were bored inside the Kirana.[5]

The Wah Group had indigenously developed the explosive HMX (His Majesty’s Explosive), which was used to trigger the device. The HMX nuclear device was successfully developed and tested by DTD led by Hafeez Qureshi.[5] The successful cold fission test was led and supervised by renowned physicist dr. Ishfaq Ahmad, and it was witnessed by PAEC chairman Munir Ahmad Khan, Lieutenant-General Zahid Ali Akbar Khan, Air-Vice Marshal (Major-General) Michael John O'Brian, General Khalid Mahmud Arif, and then-Chairman of Senate of Pakistan, Ghulam Ishaq Khan[6].

Aftermath

The need to improve and perfect the design of first nuclear device required constant testing. As a result, between 1983 and 1990, the Wah Group conducted more than 24 cold tests of the nuclear device at Kirana Hills with the help of mobile diagnostic equipment.[5] These tests were carried out in 24 horizontal-shaft designated weapon-testing laboratories measuring 100-150 feet in length which were bored inside the Kirana Hills.[5] Later due to excessive US intelligence and satellite focus on the Kirana Hills site, it was abandoned and the WTL-I was shifted to the Kala-Chitta Range.[5]

Development and the test teams

Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission

Pakistan Army Corps of Engineers

Special Works Development

Government Observants

See also

References

  1. ^ "Analysis: Custodians as proliferators". Observer Research Foundation. Observer Research Foundation. 13 August 2004. Retrieved 2011. {{cite web}}: |first= missing |last= (help); Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Where Mountains Move: The Story of Chagai: §Kirana-I: The Cold Tests". Rai Muhammad Saleh Azam, PhD (Political Science), Professor of Nuclear Policy and International Relations at the University of Sargodha University. Dr. RMS Azam (The Nation) and The Nations. June 2000. Retrieved 2011. {{cite web}}: |first= missing |last= (help); Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ a b c d e f g "Where Mountains Move: The Story of Chagai: §Kirana-I: The Cold Tests". Rai Muhammad Saleh Azam, PhD (Political Science), Professor at the University of Sargodha University. Dr. RMS Azam (The Nation), and the Defence Journal. June 2000. Retrieved 2011. {{cite web}}: |first= missing |last= (help); Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Koh Kambaran (Ras Koh Hills)" (HTM). Pakistan Encyclopedia. Pakistan Information and History Encyclopedia. {{cite web}}: |first= missing |last= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h Azam, R.M.S (June of 2000). "Kirana Hills: The Cold Tests" (HTM). Rai Muhammad Saleh Azam. Defence Journal (The Nation). Retrieved September 1st of 2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help) .
  6. ^ name="The Nation 2009">"Pakistan Became a Nuclear State in 1983-Dr. Samar", The Nation,(Islamabad) May 2, 2003 accessed on August 6, 2009

31°57′N 72°42′E / 31.950°N 72.700°E / 31.950; 72.700

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