Missile Programme
Defence GK · मिसाइल कार्यक्रम · 18 facts
IGMDP (Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme): Launched 1983 under Dr APJ Abdul Kalam; developed 5 indigenous missiles — Agni, Prithvi, Akash, Nag, Trishul
Agni-V (ICBM): India's most powerful missile; range 5500+ km; can reach all of China; tested first in 2012; MIRV capable
Agni-IV: Intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM); range 4000 km; two-stage solid fuel; capable of carrying nuclear warhead
Agni-III: Range 3500 km; two-stage solid propellant; can carry 1.5 tonne nuclear warhead; covers entire Pakistan and large parts of China
Agni-Prime: New generation canisterised ballistic missile; range 1000-2000 km; lighter and more accurate than Agni-I and II
Prithvi missiles: Surface-to-surface short-range ballistic missile; Prithvi-I (150 km, Army), Prithvi-II (250-350 km, Air Force), Prithvi-III (350-600 km, Navy — Dhanush)
BrahMos (Indo-Russia): Supersonic cruise missile jointly developed by India and Russia; speed Mach 2.8 (fastest cruise missile); range 290-450 km; named after Brahmaputra+Moskva rivers
BrahMos-NG (Next Gen): Lighter version for Tejas fighter aircraft; weight reduced to 1.5 tonnes from 2.5 tonnes; to be carried by Su-30MKI and Tejas
Akash missile: Surface-to-air missile (SAM); range 25-30 km; developed by DRDO; can engage multiple targets simultaneously; indigenously developed
Nag missile: Anti-tank guided missile (ATGM); range 4-7 km; fire-and-forget; uses infrared imaging seeker; HELINA is helicopter-launched version
Trishul: Short-range low-level surface-to-air missile; range 9 km; developed under IGMDP; used against aircraft and helicopters at low altitude
K-15 Sagarika: Submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM); range 700 km; deployed on INS Arihant nuclear submarine; forms sea leg of nuclear triad
Nirbhay: India's subsonic long-range cruise missile; range 1000+ km; terrain-hugging flight capability; DRDO developed; comparable to Pakistan's Babur
Astra missile: Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air missile; range 110 km; Mach 4.5 speed; for Su-30MKI, Tejas, MiG-29; indigenously developed
S-400 Triumf: Purchased from Russia (2018 deal Rs 35,000 crore); advanced surface-to-air missile system; can target aircraft 400 km away; 5 squadrons ordered
DRDO missile achievements: Developed hypersonic technology demonstrator vehicle (HSTDV) 2020; working on Mach 6+ hypersonic cruise missile
Pinaka rocket system: Multi-barrel rocket launcher system (MBRL); range 37-75 km; DRDO developed; indigenously manufactured; replaces BM-21 Grad
Missile export: India exported BrahMos to Philippines (2022) — first major defence export; potential buyers include Vietnam, Indonesia, UAE, Saudi Arabia