Congratulating the DRDO for the successful test firing of Agni-V missile, President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday said the nuclear…
President of India Ram Nath Kovind (Photo: PIB)
Congratulating the DRDO for the successful test firing of Agni-V missile, President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday said the nuclear capable missile will boost India’s strategic defence.
In a tweet, Kovind said: “Successful test firing of Agni-V ICBM makes every Indian very proud. It will boost our strategic defence.”
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“Congratulations to the team of DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation) scientists. May you go further on this trajectory,” Kovind added.
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The surface-to-surface intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), which has a range of 5000 km and can reach the northern-most parts of China, was fired from a test range on Abdul Kalam island off Odisha coast at 9.53 am.
The Agni-V was last tested on December 26, 2016, which was then described as the fourth and final experimental test of the three-stage missile, developed and successfully tested by the DRDO under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme.
This missile has been tested four times so far – two of the tests have been conducted from a canister on a road mobile launcher. All the four missions have been successful.
The Agni-V missile, in its operational form is designed to be stored and launched from the canister, enhancing its storage, operational readiness, transportability, response time and shelf life.
About 17 metres long, 2-metre wide and has launch weight of around 50 tonnes, the missile can carry a nuclear warhead of more than one tonne.
Once the Agni-V is inducted in the Indian military, India would join the super exclusive club of countries with ICBMs alongside the US, Russia, China, France and Britain.
The first test of Agni-V was conducted on April 19, 2012, while the second test was launched on September 15, 2013 and the third on January 31, 2015.
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