Delhi – Prime Minister's Office, South Block – April 1st, 1949
April came in clear and bright over Delhi, which was kind of ironic given how complicated India's foreign policy was getting. Arjun sat at his desk going through the final intelligence reports from the UCC crackdown, his face showing nothing.
The social order was taking shape. Now it was time to figure out what to do about everything else.
A soft knock interrupted his thoughts. Krishna Menon walked in, looking tired but satisfied after two weeks of diplomatic travel. Director Sanjeevi Pillai from RAW followed behind him, carrying a briefcase full of operational plans for his agents.
Menon settled into his chair and started briefing Arjun about all the deals he'd made in Afghanistan, Tibet, Nepal, Burma, and Ceylon, along with his read on the political situations in each country.
"Prime Minister," Menon began, his voice smooth with that slight theatrical flair he always used, "they're wary, obviously. Who wouldn't be when India suddenly starts throwing its weight around? But the important thing is they're receptive.
They want our cooperation, and more importantly, they want our security guarantees in what's becoming a pretty unstable region."
He went through the agreements one by one:
"In Afghanistan, we got the Gandhara trade routes fully reopened. The same ones that were blocked because of the war, and those vital for their economy. We also got a reciprocal trade corridor for India to reach Central Asia.
Plus we signed an MoU for Indian support in their education sector, including setting up an Indian Science and Technology Institution. Our diplomatic presence is solid there now."
"About that trade corridor though, Afghan officials agreed to it but they still want to consult the Soviets about possibly making it a joint India-Afghanistan-Soviet corridor. We should hear back from them within a month."
"In Nepal, Prime Minister Mohan Shumshe is still nervous about getting too isolated, but they agreed to explore stronger trade partnerships and infrastructure assistance. They want to leverage India's growing industrial capabilities. The groundwork is there for deeper economic integration."
"Tibet was mostly about cultural connections for monks and priests, plus enhancing the trade routes we already have with them. Their main worry is the Communist civil war in China, as expected."
"In Burma, Prime Minister U Nu is dealing with ethnic insurgencies everywhere, so he jumped at our offer to help with counter-insurgency operations and weapons assistance. In exchange, we get to operate Indian intelligence discretely within Burma to help their security forces."
"And finally in Ceylon, we got agreements for joint naval patrols, intelligence sharing about maritime threats, expanded trade, and cultural exchange programs. We emphasized the shared Tamil heritage connection."
Arjun nodded, showing a flicker of satisfaction. "Excellent work, Krishna-ji. You opened all the doors we needed. The perception of India as a helpful, indispensable protector is taking hold." He turned to Pillai. "Mr. Pillai, RAW has everything it needs to start operations. The diplomatic cover is in place."
Pillai opened his briefcase. "Prime Minister, the agents are ready to go. The first wave for Afghanistan is already moving. They'll embed as part of the educational and trade personnel, blending in with the genuine delegates traveling to Kabul, Jalalabad, and Kandahar, based on the agreements Menon-ji secured.
Their mission is long-term cultural reorientation, political infiltration, and systematic identification of strategic assets."
He pulled out a small map and traced lines with his finger. "Similar deployments are starting for Nepal, Tibet, Ceylon, and Burma. Whether they're naval military advisors, education specialists, trade advisors, or cultural exchange officers, they all provide perfect cover for our intelligence operatives.
Their orders are clear, build influence, spread narratives about northern Communist threats, gather intelligence on internal power dynamics, and identify opportunities for deeper integration or influence operations."
Arjun's gaze sharpened. "Make sure they understand how critical discretion is. The diplomatic success must never be compromised by covert activities. RAW operates in the shadows and stays unseen."
As Menon and Pillai finished their briefing and prepared to leave, another knock came at the door. G.B. Pant, the Planning Minister, and Narahari D. Parikh, the Education Minister, entered. Both looked excited but also concerned about something.
Arjun gestured for them to sit. "Did something interesting happen, Pant-ji?"
G.B. Pant, who was usually calm about everything, looked troubled as he presented a detailed report. "Prime Minister, it's regarding the Ashoka group. The progress of Layer 1, the Foundational Divisions, has been amazing.
They've worked relentlessly with your blueprints and managed to reverse-engineer the British machinery we received. They've built early prototypes for foundational tools and components like lathes and rolling mills."
"But that's where we hit a problem. The prototypes work, but they're still inferior to their British counterparts."
Pant's brow furrowed as he continued. "The main issue is precision. Even after pulling the machines apart and reverse engineering them, our current manufacturing base lacks the state-of-the-art precision instruments needed to accurately replicate and perfect these designs.
We have existing ones indeed, but they are outdated and not precise enough to make our own similar or even more advance tools."
"So, our engineers are reporting that we desperately need better interferometers, machines that use light waves for ultra-precise measurement, and better gauge blocks, precision-ground steel blocks used for calibrating machine tools.
While we can try to make our own with the help from existing ones, it'll waste too much time this way. Instead, it would be better to import some, then using them, we can easily self-replicate the machines."
Arjun's mind raced. He remembered these tools from his future knowledge. They were fundamental to precision engineering, found in every advanced factory. In 1949 India, not only they were incredibly rare, only found in top tier institutes like IISc, and the likes, they were also lagging behind in terms of technology.
This was a gap his future knowledge had anticipated but hadn't explicitly factored into the immediate manufacturing challenges of Layer 1. He had provided the designs but not necessarily the tools to build the tools with future-level precision.
"Without these instruments, Prime Minister," Pant explained, "the prototypes Layer 1 is making, while advanced for India, are still inferior in final output quality to even the British machines arriving from the UK. The precision gap will persist."
Arjun nodded slowly. This was an unexpected but critical hurdle. "Understood. This is vital, and I'll see to it."
He then turned to Parikh, wondering what issue he might be facing.
Narahari D. Parikh spoke up. "Prime Minister, you asked me earlier to conduct a survey of our top institutes and universities and gather a list of all equipment needed for rapid educational and research institute modernization. After consulting with professors from some of our top institutes, I've compiled a comprehensive list of laboratory equipment required to modernize our universities and research institutes."
Arjun leaned back, fingers steepled, looking at the minister. "Does this list cover all the educational programs? Computing, aerospace, chemical, everything?"
"Exactly, Prime Minister," Parikh replied. "These are tools to transform our physics, chemistry, biology, electronics, optics, computing, materials, and even aeronautical programs.
If we secure them quickly, universities, especially those being expanded for the IITs, can begin research immediately. Even the Ashoka Group can utilize them. Here's the list," he said, opening his folder and sliding it across the desk:
Physics / Material Science: 1-2 electron microscopes, 2-3 X-ray diffractometers, 5-10 spectrometers
Chemistry / Biochemistry: 5-10 centrifuges, 5-10 vacuum pumps, 20-30 chemical lab kits/glassware
Computing / Mathematics: 2-3 IBM punched-card setups, 1-2 differential analyzer modules
Biology / Medical Research: 20-30 microscopes, 5-10 microtomes
Electronics / Communications: 10-20 oscilloscopes, 5-10 signal generators, 10-20 multimeters
Optics / Precision Engineering: 2-5 optical benches, 10-20 lenses/prisms/mirrors
Materials / Mechanical Engineering: 2-5 hardness/tensile testers
Aviation / Aeronautics: 1 small wind tunnel instrument set, 5-10 airfoil/aero-model kits, 5-10 anemometers/pressure sensors, 5-10 precision measuring tools, 1-2 metallography kits, 1-2 high-speed cameras, 2-3 propeller/rotor models
Arjun's eyes scanned the list, and a thin, satisfied smile crossed his face. "Great work, Narahari-ji," he said, tapping a finger on the folder.
Parikh smiled back. "I'm just doing my job, Prime Minister. Besides, it was your idea."
Arjun nodded and studied the list again. "Not every item here is easy to get, and some will be hard to acquire because of their dual-use nature. But that's exactly why we need to move fast."
"Actually, add 1-2 interferometers and 5-10 gauge block sets to this list as well. We can present them as being for university and educational purposes.
Narahari-ji, coordinate with the procurement offices in London and tell them that if they deliver all these items by May, we'll pay double for each shipment. And of course, payment gets deducted from the sterling debts."
Parikh nodded, sensing the weight of the decision. "Understood, Prime Minister."
"Have you calculated the rough cost of all these items?"
Parikh replied, "Yes, Prime Minister. According to my estimates, all of this, including the newly added items, should not exceed 75-80 million pounds."
"Alright then, let's not waste any more time," Arjun said, his voice firm and decisive.
Both ministers nodded, and left to perform their next tasks.
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[A/N: I have added the discord link in Synopsis, you guys can join from there.]