Agni 5 successful launch : 10 things to know about India's Inter-Continentel Ballistic Missile

India on January, 18th morning successfully test-fired nuclear-capable surface-to-surface Agni-5 ballistic missile. The 5000-km range ballistic missile was fired off from the Abdul Kalam island off the Odisha coast at around 9.55 AM.

Agni-V is about 17 meters long, 2 metres wide and has a launch weight of around 50 tonnes.

This is the fifth developmental trial of the Agni-5 long range missile. The first test was conducted on 19 April 2012. Then other three tests were held on 15 September 2013, January 31, 2015, and December 26, 2016. All four previous missions have been successful.

10 things to know about Agni missile series :

1. India currently has at in its armoury of Agni series,
Agni-1 = 700 km range
Agni 2 = 2,000 km range
Agni 3 and Agni 4 =  2,500 km to more than 3500 km range.

2. It is developed by the the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the 17-metre long missile can carry a warhead of 1000kg.

3  Benefits of being a ballistic missile is Agni 5 can not be detected by most of radar systems presently in use by defence forces across the globe.

4. Agni 5, can target almost entire China and Pakistan. It can even reach targets in Europe.

5. Pakistan has about 130-140 nuclear-capable missiles which include Shaheen and Ghauri series. Pakistan, however, is yet to add inter-continental missiles to its arsenal.

6. On the other hand, China has a huge stock of nearly 250 nuclear missiles, including the (DongFeng) DF series. Unconfirmed reports say the DF 31A missile has the capability of striking targets over 10,000km.

7. The Agni 5 is the most advanced version of the indigenously built Agni series, part of the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP) that started in the 1960s and was once overseen by late President APJ Abdul Kalam.

8. India joined the elite club of countries like US, Russia, UK, France and China, which boast Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) capabilities, when it first tested the Agni-V in 2012.

9. In 2016, India becomes a member of MTCR (Missile Technology Control Regime) which enables India to exchange missile technology related information with other nations.

10. DRDO has plan to build Agni 6, which will have far more lethal strirking capabilities than its Agni 5.