India Successfully Test-Fires Nuclear Capable Agni-IV Ballistic Missile From Dr Abdul Kalam Island, Odisha

India successfully test-fired its nuclear-capable long range ballistic missile Agni-IV, with a strike capability of 4,000 km, as a part of user trial by the Army, reports Bloomberg Quint.

The strategic surface-to-surface missile was flight tested from launch complex-4 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Dr Abdul Kalam Island, earlier known as Wheeler Island, at about 8.35 am today (23 December), defence sources were quoted in the report as saying.

The missile was launched from a mobile launcher and was tracked and monitored by all radars, tracking systems and range stations to ascertain its performance.

The radars and electro-optical systems had been positioned along the coast of Odisha for tracking and monitoring all the parameters of the missiles.

This was the seventh trial of the Agni IV missile with its last test conducted by the strategic force command of the Indian army last year on 2 January from the same base.

Agni IV, which is indigenously developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), has a 4,000 km strike range. The missile is 20 meters long with a weight of 17 tonnes and has strategic nuclear weapon as its warhead.

"The state-of-the-art missile is equipped with modern and compact avionics to provide a high level of reliability and precision," DRDO sources was quoted in the report as saying.