India  successfully test-fired its indigenously built nuclear capable Agni-I ballistic missile, which can hit a target 700 km away, as part of a user trial by Army from a test range off Odisha coast.

The surface-to-surface missile, powered by solid propellants, was test-fired from a mobile launcher from launch pad-4 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Abdul Kalam Island (Wheeler Island), defence officials said.

Agni-I missile is equipped with sophisticated navigation system which ensures it reaches the target with a high degree of accuracy and precision. The missile, which has already been inducted into armed forces, has proved its excellent performance in terms of range, accuracy and lethality.

Weighing 12 tonnes, the 15-metre-long Agni-I is designed to carry a payload of more than one tonne. Its strike range can be extended by reducing the payload. Agni-I was developed by a premier missile development laboratory of DRDO in collaboration with Defence Research Development Laboratory and Research Centre Imarat and integrated by Bharat Dynamics Limited, Hyderabad.

Defence Research and Development (DRDO):

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is an agency of the Republic of India, charged with the military’s research and development, headquartered in New Delhi, India.
It was formed in 1958 by the merger of the Technical Development Establishment and the Directorate of Technical Development and Production with the Defence Science Organisation. It is under the administrative control of the Ministry of Defence, Government of India.