The first two Agni-V tests were land-based and the next four were launched from a canister on a mobile launcher, this is the sixth successful test flight of the missile

INDIA’S NUCLEAR FORCES ARE ENTERING a new stage of technical maturity. The country’s first indigenous nuclear-armed submarine, the Arihant, is operational. Missile testing programs suggest growing progress toward operationalisation of India’s ballistic strike capability. The Agni-V missile, first tested off the coast of Odisha on April 19, 2012, encapsulates the choices India now faces. India must decide the nuclear force best suited to meet its geopolitical ambitions, such as extending its influence in South and East Asian security issues while maintaining its status as a restrained, responsible global power.

The emergence of the Agni-V marks a new juncture in India’s nuclear history. It is the first missile able to reach Beijing and Shanghai, as well as the first to potentially host MIRV (multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles) warheads. Accordingly, the Agni-V raises a host of related strategic and governance issues facing India's strategic leaders, such as the desirable range, size, and destructive capability of India’s nuclear arsenal, along with the effectiveness of elected civilian control over nuclear force development.

Checks All  Boxes

India today successfully test-fired its indigenously developed nuclear-capable Long Range Ballistic Missile Agni-5, which has a strike range of 5,000 km. This was the sixth trial of the state-of-the-art Agni-5 which covered its full distance during the test. Unlike other missiles of the series, Agni-5 is the most advanced with new technologies in terms of navigation and guidance, warhead and engine. The test also validated critical avionics systems on board the missile that were developed by the RCI, Hyderabad.

The flight performance of the missile was monitored by radars, range stations and tracking systems. All objectives were fully met. The success of Agni-V reaffirms the country’s indigenous missile capabilities and strengthens its credible deterrence, the Defence Ministry sources said.

Many new technologies were successfully tested in the Agni-5 trial. Navigation systems, very high accuracy Ring Laser Gyro based Inertial Navigation System (RINS) and the most modern and accurate Micro Navigation System (MINS) had ensured the missile reached the target point within a few meters of accuracy, the official explained. “The high speed on-board computer and fault tolerant software, along with robust and reliable bus, guided the missile flawlessly,” he said.

The missile has been programmed in such a way that after reaching the peak of its trajectory, it will turn towards the earth and continue its journey towards the intended target with an increased speed due to the earth’s gravitational pull. The path has been precisely directed by the advanced on-board computer and inertial navigation system. As the missile enters the earth’s atmosphere, the atmospheric air rubbing the skin of the missile during the re-entry phase raises the temperature beyond 4,000 degrees Celsius, sources said. However, the indigenously designed and developed carbon-carbon composite heat shield continues to burn sacrificially, protecting the payload and maintaining the inside temperature below 50 degrees Celsius, sources added.

Finally, commanded by the sophisticated on-board computer with a support of ring laser gyro based inertial navigation system, the micro inertial navigation system, fully digital control system and advanced compact avionics, the missile hit the designated target point accurately, they said. Ships located in mid-range and at the target point, tracked the vehicle and witnessed the final event. Radars and electro-optical systems on the path monitored all parameters of the missile and displayed in real time, they added.

Is India’s Agni-V Missile A Game Changer?

India’s launch of the Agni-V, has been widely hailed as a ‘game changer’ and a ‘milestone’ in India’s quest for national security. In fact, at least two winning ‘games’ can be identified in this context. The first and most touted game, deterring China, is relevant. The second game, strategic politics, is a significant winning game.

First, in deterring China, the main achievement of the Agni-V is said to be its enhanced reach. With a range of 5,000 km, it is capable of targeting all of China (read Beijing and Shanghai) from deep inside Indian territory. But the notion that Beijing and Shanghai must be targeted in order to deter China is questionable because it assumes that Chinese leaders will be willing to dispense with smaller but still large cities that are closer to India. With a population of over 5 million, Kunming is less than 1,500 km from Kolkata while Guangzhou, whose population exceeds 10 million, is about 2,500 km from Kolkata. In both cases, existing intermediate-range missiles with ranges of 2,000–3,000 km (Agni-II and Agni-III) fired from the Indian northeast would suffice to cover the distance.

The second (winning) game has to do with strategic politics. The Agni-V is a ‘game changer’ — albeit not a radical one — for the US–China–India strategic triangle. This is possible because much that goes by the name of ‘strategy’ boils down to a combination of perception and interests. Notwithstanding the admonitory finger-wagging that followed India’s 1998 tests, both the US and China accommodated India. A key landmark was the changing of US domestic law and the rules of the international cartel, the Nuclear Suppliers Group, to allow nuclear civilian trade with India. The twin changes in effect recognised the reality of India’s nuclear weapons status because the agreements formally classified Indian nuclear facilities into civilian and military. It is hard to imagine that this would have happened without India having crossed the testing threshold first.

Conclusion

The Agni-V missile carries new significance for India and stands as an important Indian technical achievement. Operating with a reach of 5,000 km (actually touted by no less than Chinese defence experts to be over 8,000 km, but deliberately underplayed by India), however, it brings India to the cusp of intercontinental ballistic missile capability, generally defined as a range of over 5,500 km. The missile features new composite materials and could potentially host MIRV platforms, both significant technical leaps in missile development. For India’s military agencies, developing and mastering the Agni-V opens new horizons in technological knowledge that can be applied to subsequent projects. (with valuable inputs by Rajesh Basrur & Frank O'Donnel)

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