NEW DELHI, India (AP) - India's military began the country's biggest military exercises in 13 years on Saturday, training troops to face future battle scenarios involving nuclear, biological and chemical weapon strikes.

More than 50,000 troops and at least 120 aircraft were participating in the exercises, named ``Complete Victory.''

The exercises, which continue until Thursday, are being held in the Thar desert in the western state of Rajasthan. India's last major military exercises were held in 1988 in the same area.

The exercises were to include a mock battle involving ground troops, artillery units, combat aircraft and commandos, the United News of India news agency said. Fighter jets of the Indian air force were to practice launching strikes, while elite commando units and paratroopers were to attempt to ``seize enemy assets,'' the news agency said.

The exercises end with a massive demonstration of firepower at India's Pokharan test range, the site of nuclear tests in May 1998. India's 1998 tests were followed by nuclear tests conducted by its neighbor and rival, Pakistan.

India's latest exercises sparked a new controversy before they had even begun, when Pakistan complained it had not been informed in advance. India said it had informed its neighbor of the exercises when top military officers of the two countries met on April 17.

Indian officials said the exercises were being conducted well away from the India-Pakistan border. The site of the tests is about 45 miles from the frontier.

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