Agni-V Missile

Subject – Science and Tech

Context – China questions India’s missile project

Concept –

Agni-V is the most advanced surface-to-surface indigenously built ballistic missile.
It is a three-stage, solid fuel 17-metre tall, and is capable of carrying a nuclear warhead of about 1.5 tonnes.
Agni-V is a fire and forget missile, which once fired cannot be stopped, except by an interceptor missile.
It has been developed under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).
Agni- 5 is the intercontinental surface-to-surface nuclear capable ballistic missile. It is the latest in India’s “Agni” family of medium to intercontinental range missiles.
Agni-5 has a range of over 5,000 km and can carry about a 1500-kg warhead. It can target almost all of Asia including Pakistan and China and Europe.
The 17-metre long Agni-5 Missile weighs about 50 tonnes and is a very agile and modern weapon system.
India has already joined an elite club of nations that possess the ICBM launch capability when the maiden test-firing of Agni-V was successfully conducted in April, 2012. Only the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council – China, France, Russia, the United States and Britain, along with Israel, have so far possessed such long-range missiles.

To know about other Agni Missiles, please click here.