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India test-fires N-capable Agni-V

NEW DELHI: India on Thursday demonstrated the capability of launching a nuclear-tipped inter-continental ballistic missile ( ICBM) as Agni-V hit a target over 5,000 km away.

With this, India has joined an elite group of nations which have mastered such technology.

The 5,000 km-range missile gives India the capability to hit targets in China, including Beijing, eastern Europe, east Africa and the Australian coast.

"This launch has given a message to the entire world that India has the capability to design, develop, build and manufacture missiles of this class, and we are today, a missile power," V K Saraswat, director general, Defence Research and Development Organisation, said.

He said the missile launch was a major milestone in the preparedness of strategic defence of the country.

The Agni-V is 17.5m tall, solid-fuelled, three-stage missile with a launch weight of 50 tons, which includes a 1.5 tonne warhead.

This was the first launch of the missile after the country's defence scientists began work on it three years ago.

"The first flight itself was demonstrated in user deliverable mode," Avinash Chander, project director of Agni-V, said, adding that it was indeed a rare achievement to launch the missile in such a short duration.

The missile was launched at 8:07 hours on Thursday from a mobile launcher at the Wheeler Island off Orissa coast. It reached the apex at 600 kms and then re-entered the atmosphere to strike a target over 5000 km away from the launch site.

The launch was monitored by three ships deployed in the Indian Ocean and radars were also there tracking the complete trajectory of the missile.

The personnel on the ships spotted a fireball as the missile re-entered the atmosphere on its way to hit the target.

"The sleek missile, within a few seconds of its blast-off from the Island launch pad, roared majestically into the sky leaving behind its trajectory a trail of thin orange and white smoke before disappearing," a defence official at the launch site said

Saraswat said the missile had been achieved despite the stringent export control regimes, which developed countries have imposed on India.

"This shows that self-reliance in the area of this technology is now becoming a reality," he said.

Saraswat said the DRDO would conduct two more validation tests before starting the production of this missile.

The DRDO chief said that barring some electronic components, the Agni V was a completely indigenous product.

"More than 80 per cent of the missile is indigenous, except for the electronic components which we import. Everything has been designed, developed and produced in our industry and our laboratories," he said.

On the road ahead, Saraswat said the DRDO would now develop multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles for anti-satellite system.

"Today, we have done a great event for the country. All the team work that has gone in for the last three years has given a fruitful result," Tessy Thomas, chief scientist, project Agni-V, said.

A senior DRDO scientist said that the missile would be ready for induction into the armed forces by 2014.

"The 5000-plus kilometre range fulfils our strategic needs and moreover we are developing a deterrent capability," former DRDO chief M Natarajan said.

"We have to develop a missile to meet our strategic needs and identified threat perceptions and this missile will answers all those," he said.

China reacts cautiously

BEIJING/NEW DELHI: Reacting cautiously to India's test of Agni-V missile, China on Thursday said the two countries are not rivals and enjoy "sound" relations though the sources in the Chinese establishment feel that the launch can give rise to another round of arms race in the region.

"China has taken note of reports on India's missile launch. The two countries have sound relationship. "During the (recently held) BRICS meeting (in Delhi) the leadership had consensus to take the relationship further and to push forward bilateral strategic cooperative partnership," Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Liu Weimin told a media briefing in Beijing when asked about the launch.

In Delhi, the diplomatic sources in the Chinese embassy said the "Agni-V launch can give rise to another round of arms race in this part of the world."

They were also critical of the media commentary on the successful launch of the nuclear capable 5000 km-range Agni-V missile, saying it sounded provocative. Asked whether China was concerned as most of the country would come under the Agni's range, Liu said in Beijing that "both the countries are emerging powers. We are not rivals. We are cooperative partners. We should cherish the hard earned momentum of cooperation."

To another question whether it would affect the regional stability, he said "we hope Asian countries can contribute to peace and stability."

However, China's state-run Global Times came out with a strong editorial criticising the launch, claiming that the Chinese nuclear power is more "stronger and reliable" and New Delhi has "no chance" to catch up.

"India should not overestimate its strength. Even if it has missiles that could reach most parts of China, that does not mean it will gain anything from being arrogant during disputes with China," Global Times, the influential tabloid of China's ruling Communist Party, said in its editorial.

Known for its scathing attacks on countries that have disputes with China, the daily said "India should be clear that China's nuclear power is stronger and more reliable."

"For the foreseeable future, India would stand no chance," it said in the editorial titled "India being swept away by military delusion." "India should also not overstate the value of its Western allies and the profits it could gain from participating in a containment of China. If it equates long-range strategic missiles with deterrence of China, and stirs up further hostility, it could be sorely mistaken," it said. The paper noted that India has moved rapidly in developing missile technology.

"It successfully launched the Agni IV with a range of 3,500 km last year. Indian public opinion has long seen China as its reference point for military development. "It seems India's path for boosting its military strength has not met too many obstacles. India is still poor and lags behind in infrastructure construction, but its society is highly supportive of developing nuclear power and the West chooses to overlook India's disregard of nuclear and missile control treaties," the editorial charged.

The West remains "silent on the fact that India's military spending increased by 17 per cent in 2012 and the country has again become the largest weapons importer in the world," it said, without referring to China's own whopping defence budget of USD 106 billion listed for this year. — PTI

Maoists produce abducted BJD MLA in people's court

BHUBANESHWAR: Maoists on Thursday produced abducted ruling BJD MLA Jhina Hikaka before a people's court to decide his fate, a day after the Odisha government said it would withdraw cases against 13 prisoners in exchange for freedom of the tribal legislator. 

As already communicated by the Maoists of the Andhra Odisha Border Special Zonal Committee (AOBSZC), the praja court has started its proceedings at a remote place in the Narayanpatna area of Koraput district, lawyer Nihar Ranjan Patnaik, who fights cases for the rebels, said. 

The 37-year-old Laxmipur MLA was produced before the praja court, Patnaik confirmed, saying the proceedings were in progress and many people, mostly tribals, have been called for recording of their statements. 

The Koraput-based lawyer, however, had no idea as to when the praja court proceedings would be completed and the verdict about the MLA's fate pronounced. 

The praja court was held a day after the deadline set by the Maoists for fulfilment of their demands expired at 5 PM yesterday and the ultras said in a message that the MLA's fate would be decided through this process. 

Bowing to demand by Maoists, the state government also announced that it was ready to withdraw prosecution against 13 prisoners, including five Maoists, for securing the release of Hikaka, who was abducted by the Naxals on March 24. 

"It has been decided to take steps for withdrawal of prosecution against 13 persons following the due process of law," home secretary U N Behera had said last evening. 

Earlier after the expiry of the ultimatum, in a fresh message to the media, a leader of the AOBSZC said it had no faith in the state government and that the fate of the tribal MLA would be decided by a people's court. 

The message said the deadline had already been extended four times in the past and there would be no further extension. — PTI

SC notice to Odisha govt on freeing Maoists 

Bhubaneswar: As Maoists will decide the fate of the abducted Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MLA Jhina Hikaka in ‘praja court’ on Thursday, the Supreme Court will today hear the plea filed by a retired Army officer asking to restrain the Odisha government from meeting the demand of Maoists for releasing jailed rebels. 

Major General (retd) Gangurdep Bakshi, a counter-terrorism operations expert, pleaded with the apex court on Wednesday that the state government should be restrained from releasing the Maoists captured by the security forces, who had risked their lives to nab them. 

The apex court bench comprising Justices TS Thakur and Gyan Sudha Misra agreed to hear the plea on Thursday. However, they pulled up Bakshi for moving the court so late. 

Bakshi had also submitted that his petition be given urgent hearing as the deadline set by the Maoists would end today.