On Monday, India successfully tested a new-generation Agni-5 ballistic missile armed with several warheads, each capable of reaching a distinct target. The test represents a long-awaited update to India's missile system, greatly increasing its strike capabilities, including the nuclear option.

Highlights:

• India successfully tested the Agni-5 ballistic missile with MIRV technology, enhancing strike capabilities.
• PM Narendra Modi emphasized its importance, similar to past anti-satellite tests.
• The MIRV-equipped Agni-5, developed by DRDO, reinforces India's nuclear deterrent policy.

The capacity to carry several warheads on one missile, known as MIRV or Multiple Independently Targetable Reentry Vehicle, is a technology developed five decades ago but only possessed by a few countries: the United States, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, and France. The previous year, Pakistan claimed to have tested Ababeel, a MIRV-equipped missile.

To emphasize the significance of the test, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced it directly in a congratulatory notification to the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), much as he did a few years ago when India conducted an anti-satellite test.

"Excited of our the Defense Research and Development scientists for Mission Divyastra, the first flight evaluation of locally built Agni-5 missile with Multiple Independently Targetable Reentry Vehicle (MIRV) technology," Modi stated in a statement that was shared on 'X'

Agni is a far-reaching rocket developed by the DRDO. Since the early 1990s, the Indian armed forces' arsenal has included the Agni missile family.

Missiles using MIRV technology may target several targets that are hundreds of miles distant. Agni-5, which can carry nuclear warheads and strike targets over 5,000 kilometers distant, is primarily designed to counter China's challenge. It features a three-stage solid-fuel engine.

Dr. V K Saraswat, the former head of DRDO, stated that MIRV technology considerably boosted the Agni-5 missile's effectiveness.

"In the most recent flying test, we carried several warheads. The main benefit of these warheads is that they're smart and intelligent, and can be configured to attack many specified targets, giving them a broader range of effect. Thus, it is a force multiplier," he stated.

He stated that the MIRV-equipped Agni-5 missiles produced by DRDO could carry three or four warheads. The mother missile may launch several payloads at varied velocities and altitudes for different targets, and the warheads can be self-guided to a predetermined target area.

"India follows a no-first-use nuclear policy. So, in the event of a (nuclear) assault, India's retaliation must be greater and more powerful to inflict significant damage," he added. Saraswat stated that the MIRV technology will provide India with such capacity, serving as a deterrent.

Dr Tessy Thomas, former chief of DRDO's Aeronautical Systems, who managed the Agni project until last year, said that the effective flight evaluation of the missile was a proud occasion for the country.

The Agni 1 to 4 missiles, with ranges of 700 km to 3,500 km, have already been deployed. This had medium and intercontinental variants. Since 2012, Agni-5 has undergone multiple successful tests.

Monday's test comes after two previous Agni-P missile tests in 2021. Agni-P are modernized versions of the earlier generation Agni-1 and Agni-2 missiles, outfitted with cutting-edge technology. In December 2022, DRDO tested Agni-5's night-time capability. The next generation of the Agni missile, Agni-6, is planned to be a full-fledged intercontinental ballistic missile with a range of more than 7,000 kilometers.

According to government sources, a woman led the DRDO development team for the MIRV-equipped Agni-5 missile, which also included several other women experts. While DRDO sources would not identify the identity of the initiative's director, a 2023 DRDO bulletin identified Sheena Rani, scientist and associate director of DRDO's Advanced Systems Laboratory, as Agni's programme director.