Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee introduced the Weapons of Mass Destruction and their Delivery Systems bill on the eve of the seventh anniversary of the tests India carried with a series of weapons, including a 45-megaton thermonuclear device.

The bill, which becomes law if endorsed by parliament's two houses, would "provide an integrated legislative basis to India's commitment to prevent proliferation of weapons of mass destruction," Mukherjee said.

"The provisions of the act apply to export, transfer, re-transfer, transit and transshipment of material, equipment or technology relating to weapons of mass destruction or their means of delivery," Mukherjee added.

India has refused to sign two hallmark agreements on proliferation, the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and Non-Proliferation Treaty, saying they are discriminatory because they allow the five permanent members of the UN Security Council to keep their nuclear weapons.

After the 1998 tests, which were matched by rival Pakistan the same month, India announced a moratorium on future tests and called for a time-frame for global disarmament.

"In view of India's status as a nuclear weapon state and its international commitments it was felt necessary to introduce this legislation," a statement accompanying the draft legislation said.

In April, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice offered New Delhi greater access to high technology sales, including civilian nuclear power plants and fuel to meet its growing energy needs.

India is currently barred from buying such equipment because it is not a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty that forbids such sales to countries that do not agree to international inspection of nuclear plants and facilities.

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