The Strategic Nuclear Command, or the Strategic Forces Command, forms part of India's Nuclear Command Authority (NCA; formed on 6 January 2003) responsible for the management of the country's tactical and strategic nuclear weapons.
The NCA itself comprises a political council chaired by the prime minister — the only person entitled to authorise the use of nuclear weapons — served by an executive council chaired by the national security adviser. Their directives are to be operationalised by a new Strategic Forces Command under the control of a Commander-in-Chief of the rank of Air Marshal (or its equivalent) in charge of the management and administration of the tactical and strategic nuclear forces.
The NCA may be seen as the first stage in the development of an effective and robust command-and-control (C2) and indications-and-warning (I&W) systems and infrastructure for its strategic nuclear force commensurate with India's strategic requirements.
