India on Monday successfully conducted the first flight test of the indigenously designed Agni-5 missile capable of deploying multiple warheads. The nuclear-capable missile named ‘Divyastra’ can hit targets at range of more than 5,000 kms including China. Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)scientists for the feat.
“Proud of our DRDO scientists for Mission Divyastra, the first flight test of indigenously developed Agni-5 missile with Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle (MIRV) technology,” Modi said on ‘X’.
The mission was headed by a woman scientist. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also congratulated DRDO scientists on the successful test of Mission Divyastra.
With the latest achievement ensuring that a single inter-continental ballistic missile(ICBM)can deploy multiple warheads at different locations, India has joined the select group of nations having MIRV capability. The other nations include US, Russia and China.
The weapon system is equipped with indigenous avionics systems and high-accuracy sensor packages which ensured that the re-entry vehicles reached the target points within the desired accuracy.
The capability is an enunciator of India’s growing technological prowess. The Agni-5, with a range of 5000 km, is developed considering the long-term security needs of the country. The missile can bring almost the entire Asia including the northernmost part of China as well as some regions in Europe under its striking range. The Agni 1 to 4 missiles have ranges from 700 km to 3,500 km and have already been deployed.
India in 2022 had conducted a successful night time flight test of surface to surface Agni-5. The nuclear capable missile which uses a three-stage solid fuelled engine, has been developed by the Defence Research and Development organisation (DRDO) and operated by the Strategic Forces Command(SFC). It is a key tri-services formation that manages and administers all the strategic assets and falls under purview of the Nuclear Command Authority of India.
The test was carried out primarily to validate various new technologies onboard the missile which can strike targets at ranges of around 5,000 to 5,500 kilometers with a very high degree of accuracy.
