India Developing New Generation of Missiles

India is developing a new generation of long-range missiles following its successes with its Agni and Prithvi missiles, Asian News International reported yesterday (see GSN, June 19).

The weapons in development include a three-stage Agni variant with an expected range between 5,000 and 5,500 kilometers; a hypersonic version of its Brahmos cruise missile; and a nuclear-capable, submarine-launched missile dubbed Sagarika (see GSN, Jan. 7, 2003).

India plans to test the 3,000-kilometer-range Agni 3 missile twice in the next 18 months before preparing to test the new model.

"Suggestions have come and we are reviewing it," said M. Natrajan, scientific adviser to India’s defense minister.  “It (a 5,000-kilometer-range Agni missile) looks feasible from the onset" (see GSN, April 16).

The Indian Defense Research and Development Organization announced on Saturday that it has already tested the Sagarika missile, which has a range of 1,000 kilometers (Sudhakar Jagdish, Asian News International/Daily India).

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