India on Friday successfully test-fired a ballistic missile from its home-made nuke submarine INS Arihant, marking a major milestone in the country’s naval history.
The submarine-launched ballistic missile, or SLBM, was tested to a predetermined range and impacted the target area in the Bay of Bengal with very high accuracy, the Indian Defence Ministry said in a statement.
“All operational and technological parameters of the weapons system have been validated,” the Ministry said.
“The successful test launch of the SLBM by INS Arihant is significant to prove crew competency and validate India’s ballistic missile submarine programme, a key element of India’s nuclear deterrence capability,” the statement said.
“A robust, survivable and assured retaliatory capability is in keeping with India’s policy to have credible minimum deterrence that underpins its ‘no first use’ commitment,” it added.
India currently has three home-made ballistic missile submarines in its fleet, including INS Arihant. The S2 strategic strike nuclear submarine is the lead ship of India’s Arihant class of nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines.
With the success of this test, experts believe that India’s ballistic missile submarines could now target China and Pakistan from underwater locations.
Source: United News of Bangladesh