The Narendra Modi government has quietly approved the induction and deployment of the 700 km long range surface-to-surface Shaurya supersonic strategic missile, even as there has been a move forward in the development of the 5,000 km K-5 ballistic missile. range launched from submarines. Shaurya is the land-based version of the submarine-launched BA-05 missile and has been developed by the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO). The terrestrial version was last discreetly tested prior to induction as part of user testing at Odisha’s Balasore on October 3.
According to leading missile experts, Shaurya is a delivery system stored in a composite container for rapid deployment and minimal interaction with the elements over a long period. The strategic missile flies at a supersonic speed of Mach 7, or 2.4 km per second, at a height of 50 km (within the atmosphere) and reaches the designated target at Mach 4.
The missile will soon be deployed at locations identified by the Indian Strategic Forces Command under the direction of the National Security Council. The missile has a warhead that weighs around 160 kg.
While the Modi government’s decision to opt for a land-based version is significant, as the missile can be launched by a single vehicle, the DRDO is also rapidly advancing the development of a 5,000 km version of the submarine-launched ballistic missile. (SLBM). With a range equivalent to the Agni-5 land ballistic missile, the K-5 will be deployed to the Arihant class of nuclear submarines.
While missile scientists are silent on the K-5 SLBM, the weapons system is expected to be tested in the next 15 months and then deployed in the 6,000-ton SSBN Arihant class. The second Arihant-class nuclear-powered submarine, INS Arighat, will be operational in the next six months.
The back-to-back tests of hypersonic missiles (September 7), Shaurya missiles (October 3), and supersonic missile-assisted torpedo launch (October 5) by Balasore’s DRDO are clear signals from the government to the country’s adversary that India does not he will cower before any coercion. The 800 km range subsonic cruise missile Nirbhay will be tested in the next two weeks and will be listed in the Indian army and navy. The tactical missile has already been deployed in limited numbers in response to the Chinese build-up in Tibet and Xinjiang.
At a time when India is committed to a belligerent Chinese army in the Ladakh sector, a senior government official said the testing and deployment of short-range delivery platforms clearly conveys the Modi government’s intention not to back down from no aggression or cartographic expansion plan of any adversary in the neighborhood.
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