Prithvi II test-fired

India on Saturday successfully test-fired the indigenous nuclear capable missile, Prithvi II, to assess the weapon’s user specific requirements at Chandipur in Balasore district in north Odisha.

Sources in the Balasore district administration said the missile was launched from a mobile launcher parked at launch pad number three of the premier missile testing centre run by the Defence Research and Development Organisation at 1107 hours.

The missile, which has already been inducted into the Army, has been test fired several times in the past.

Developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation , Prithvi II is a 8.5 metre-long surface-to-surface ballistic missile weighing about 460 kg. It has the capability to destroy a target at a distance of 300 to 350 km carrying both conventional as well as nuclear warheads of 500 kg.

Many scientists from Defence Research and Development Organisation  and representatives of the Indian armed forces were present at the Interim Test Range on Saturday.

The operation was also monitored by a naval warship stationed deep inside the Bay of Bengal as well as radars and electro optical systems deployed in different places on the Odisha coast.

The test firing was originally scheduled for Friday but was postponed due to some technical snags.