India tests long-range nuclear-capable missile

Published Tuesday, November 15, 2011

By AFP

India on Tuesday sucessfully test fired one of its longest range missiles capable of carrying a one-tonne nuclear warhead deep inside China, officials said.

A Defence Research and Development Organisation spokesman said the Agni-IV missile was launched at 9:00am (0330 GMT) from a test site in the eastern Indian state of Orissa.

"All the parameters have been met and it was a very successful test," DRDO spokesman Ravi Gupta told AFP.

He said the nuclear-capable, two-stage missile which is powered by solid fuel was fired beyond the Bay of Bengal into the Indian Ocean. Agni means fire in Sanskrit.

"Agni-IV has a maximum range of 3,500 kilometres (2,170 miles) but this time the launch parameter was 3,000 kilometres," the official spokesman said.

The Agni series is one of five missiles being developed by the DRDO under an Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme launched in 1983.

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