India Successfully Tested the Agni-Prime Missile from a Rail-Based Launcher

India Launched Agni-Prime Missile With 2000 km Range from a Train: Explore More About the Nuclear Missile

On Thursday, India successfully tested a nuclear missile, Agni-Prime, from a rail-based launcher. The projectile has a long range of 2,000 km, a short reaction time, and low visibility. The Defence Minister of India, Rajnath Singh, said it is the first missile of its kind and will assist the armed forces in cross-country operations.

India Successfully Test-Fired the Nuclear-Capable Missile

Agni-Prime’s launch was witnessed by DRDO scientists and officers of the Strategic Forces Command. Rajnath Singh congratulated the team and said, “This successful flight test has put India in the group of select nations with capabilities that have developed canisterised launch systems from an on-the-move rail network.”

Several things make Agni-Prime a very special missile. One of its key features is that it is a self-sustained missile equipped with independent launch capability. This means the train can deploy on its own without the need for external support or launch facilities.

Moreover, the nuclear-powered missile has state-of-the-art communication systems and protection mechanisms.

A Significant Step Ahead for India's Defense Strategy

After launching Agni-Prime, scientists and researchers tracked its trajectory to see if it met all the set objectives. According to the data shared by various ground stations, the missile launch met all the goals. The Defence Minister congratulated DRDO, SFC, and the Armed Forces upon its successful launch.

The minister highlighted that this launch of the Intermediate Range Agni-Prime Missile has placed India among the very few nations that have managed to deploy and launch a missile through a rail-based system.

This successful test means that the Indian military will now be able to launch the missile even from the remotest regions of India. All that the military needs is a rail track to the location from where the missile will be launched. Not to mention that the Indian railway track network is the fourth largest in the world, which already equips India with the ability to launch missiles from several remote areas.

To sum up, the rail-based missile system has many advantages, like hiding missiles from enemy satellites under the tunnels and cross-country mobility. However, it also has a major drawback. If there is no tunnel near the launch point, hiding from enemy satellites will be difficult.