India successfully test-fires Prithvi-II

India today successfully test-fired its indigenously developed, nuclear-capable, ballistic missile Prithvi-II from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur

India today successfully test-fired its indigenously developed, nuclear-capable, ballistic missile Prithvi-II from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, about 15 km from here off the Orissa coast.

The missile mounted on a mobile launcher was blasted off from the launch complex-3 in the ITR at around 6:50 am, defence sources said.

"The trial of Prithvi-II, conducted by the Army, has gone through nicely," ITR Director S P Dash said. With a maximum striking range of 350 km, Prithvi-II is capable of carrying a pay-load of 500 kg.

The test firing of the surface-to-surface missile, which has already been inducted into Indian armed forces, was a users trial by the Army's specialised group "strategic force command" (SFC), the sources said.

Prithvi, the first ballistic missile developed under the country's prestigious Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP), is propelled by liquid propulsion twin engine.

With a length of nine metre and one metre diameter, Prithvi-II uses an advanced inertial guidance system with manoeuvring trajectory.

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