Will give befitting response to every step against India's self-respect: Rajnath Singh

New Delhi: India's nuclear tests in 1998 sent a message to the world that it may be a peace-loving nation but will not tolerate any step taken against its self-respect, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said here on Thursday.

Addressing the National Technology Day celebrations here, Singh said India had learnt lessons from history after external aggressors ravaged the centre of learning at Nalanda and culture icon at Somnath.

"We have learnt our lessons from history and resolved that we will not allow such history to be repeated," Singh said at the function that also celebrated the 25th anniversary of the 1998 Pokhran -II nuclear tests.

"India's nuclear tests conveyed a message to the world that we may be a peace loving nation but we will not see a Nalanda burn again. We will not tolerate our cultural icon like Somnath be ravaged again," the defence minister said.

"We will give a befitting reply to every step taken against our self-respect," Singh said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh and top scientists were present at the function.