The destruction of two Japanese cities namely Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 at the hands of American Atomic bombs unveiled not only the enormous destructive capability of the nuclear devices but also the hazards and the holocausts which were in store for the humanity. The first atomic explosion started a nuclear race among the great powers. Within the span of a decade the Soviet Union, Britain and France also joined the nuclear club. In 1964 Peoples Republic of China too exploded an atomic device. Thus by the middle of the sixties the problem of nuclear proliferation had assumed serious proportions especially when several other nations like Israel, India, South Africa and Brazil were also on the threshold of becoming nuclear states. .
The nuclear hazards became graver with the passage of each year. Particularly the developing nations felt more concerned about the growing complications emerging from the increasing threat to their safety. The gravity of the problem of nuclear proliferation can be judged from the fact that despite signing the Limited Test Ban Treaty in 1963 the USA, USSR, and UK continued with their underground nuclear explosions. It is estimated that from 1963 to 1967 the number of nuclear explosions made by US was 166, by USSR 48, by UK 1, by France 18 and by China 7. .
As a result there had been a persistent demand in the United Nations for the conclusion of a treaty to curb the spread of nuclear weapons. Even when the Geneva Disarmament Conference began its work in 1965, the majority of the delegates were anxious to see the Americans and Russians sink their differences and put before the conference a joint proposal. The final draft of the treaty was prepared only in January 1968. The General Assembly of UN passed on 12 June 1968 a resolution by which it recommended the adoption of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) by its members. The treaty was approved by the General Assembly by an overwhelming majority.