NDTV

Bhubaneshwar, Jul  9: Nuclear capable Long Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM) Agni-III was successfully test fired from the Wheeler's Island off the Bhadrak coast on Sunday.

The test flight was conducted in presence of Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee and about 300 scientists from the DRDO and Defence Labs.

The missile with a range of 3,500 kilometres is designed to carry a nuclear warhead and hit locations as far as China's Beijing and Shanghai cities.

China is far ahead in the missile race and Agni III is aimed at matching its nuclear strike capacity in the next few years.

Report before the test-firing:

"As far as we are concerned, we have done all the technical tasks necessary for a project of that kind. When it will get launched, from where it will get launched, how it will get launched, is a decision that will be taken at a higher level," DRDO chief, Dr M Natrajan said.

If the test is successful, it will validate the assured reach of India's nuclear weapons to over 3,000 km.

This will effectively put India on the threshold of an Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile capability, which is the litmus test for recognition as a bona fide nuclear weapons power.

So far, India has a proven missile capability over a range of only 2,000 km with the Agni-2.

With the more assured second-strike capability, which comes with its extended reach, the Agni-3 is expected to add to the credibility of India's nuclear deterrence.

Preparations at the missile firing facility at Wheeler's Islands are complete.

"Launch complex has been suitably changed. The main requirement for the launch complex is the safety corridor because if there is higher propulsion, so the safety corridor has to be suitable decided," Chief Controller DRDO, SC Narang said.

The decision to go ahead with the test despite the adverse international reaction to the North Korean firings earlier this week is an indication that India has done its homework with the principal international opinion maker.

The test firing of the Agni-3 would be a signal that India will retain its strategic autonomy despite the constraints of the Indo-US nuclear deal.

It will also address the uncertainty surrounding the future of India's strategic weapons programme.

The Agni-3 is an indicator that New Delhi is not content to be seen as merely a notional nuclear power.