Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on March 11 conducted first successful flight test of indigenously developed Agni-5 missile with Multiple Independently Targetable Re-Entry Vehicle ( MIRV) technology.
- The flight test named Mission Divyastra was carried out from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island in Odisha.
- MIRV (Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle) technology is the capability that allows multiple warheads to be loaded on a single missile delivery system and programmed to hit different targets, thus greatly enhancing the missile’s destructive potential.
- The development of MIRV capability marks a significant upgrade for India’s missile systems, and expands its nuclear options.
- Traditional missiles carry a single warhead, or weapon, that goes and hits the intended target.
- MIRV-equipped missiles can accommodate multiple warheads, each of which can be programmed to strike a separate target.
- They can all be made to hit the same location too, one after the other, thus ensuring complete annihilation of the target.
- The technology was first deployed in the 1970s by the United States and the then Soviet Union. France, the United Kingdom, and China also have this technology.
