India Successfully Test-Fires Nuclear Capable Ballistic Agni-1 Missile: 10 Facts

The short-range nuclear capable ballistic missile Agni-1 has a strike range of over 700 km.

Agni-1 is an indigenously developed surface-to-surface, single-stage missile which was inducted into service in 2004.

The state-of-the-art missile is propelled by a solid rocket propellant system. It was launched as part of a regular training exercise by the armed forces.

The sophisticated Agni-1 missile is equipped with a specialised navigation system that ensures it reaches the target with a high degree of precision.

The defence sources said that the trajectory of the trial was tracked by a battery of sophisticated radars, telemetry observation stations, electro-optic instruments and naval ships right from its launch till the missile hit the target area with pin-point accuracy.

Agni-1 missile has already been inducted into the armed forces and has proved its performance in terms of range, accuracy and lethality, the defence sources said, adding that the trial reconfirms the Army's readiness to fire it at short notice.

Agni-1 missile weighs around 12 tonnes. It is 15-metre-long and can carry payloads up to 1,000 kg.

The missile, capable of carrying nuclear warheads, can hit a target beyond 700 km.

Agni-1 missile was developed by the Advanced Systems Laboratory or ASL in collaboration with the Defence Research Development Laboratory (DRDL) and the Research Centre Imarat (RCI). The Advanced Systems Laboratory is the premier missile development laboratory of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).

The missile was integrated by the Bharat Dynamics Limited, Hyderabad.  The last trial was successfully conducted on November 22, 2016, from the same base.