India on Saturday test-fired its indigenously developed nuclear-capable ‘Prithvi-II' ballistic missile from the Integrated Test Range off Odisha coast in east India as part of a user trial by the Army. "The sophisticated surface-to-surface missile was flight tested at around 1100 hours (local time) from a mobile launcher at ITR's launch complex-3 as part of an operational exercise," defence sources were quoted as saying by the Press Trust of India. The state-of-the-art missile, capable of carrying both nuclear and conventional warheads, has a length of 9 metres and is one metre in diameter with liquid propulsion twin engine. Prithvi, the first ballistic missile developed under the country's prestigious Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme has the capability to carry 500 kg of warheads with a strike range of 350 km. The missile uses advanced inertial guidance system with maneuvering trajectory.
