Within a span of two days, India demonstrated the reliability of two surface-to-surface missiles by successfully test-firing nuclear-weapons capable Shaurya and Prithvi-II ballistic systems on saturday(24th september) and Monday(26th september).

Shaurya

Shaurya, a nuclear-capable surface-to-surface medium range missile, was test-fired from Chandipur-on-sea off the Orissa coast at 2.30 PM on Saturday. The missile with a maximum range of 750 km was test-fired from an underground silo at Integrated Test Range of the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO).

Shaurya is being developed for use by both the Army and the Navy, and can carry a warhead of one tonne. The missile is a two stage, solid fueled weapon and can carry conventional as well as nuclear warheads.

Shaurya is 10 metre in length and about half-a-metre in width. It uses solid fuel that gives it a longer service-life and shorter launch time compared to the missiles which use liquid fuel. 

As the missile has been canisterised for increased mobility and can be fired from silos, so its development gives India second-strike capability in keeping with the country's states doctrine of no first-use of nuclear weapons. The last test of Shaurya was conducted in November 2008.

Prithvi II

DRDO developed surface to surface strategic PRITHVI (P-II) Missile was successfully flight tested at 9 A.M today i.e. 26th September 2011, from Launch Complex-III, ITR, Chandipur, Balasore District in Orissa. The entire launch operations were carried out by the Armed Forces as a part of regular training exercises and monitored by the scientists of DRDO.

PRITHVI-II, the first indigenous surface to surface strategic Missile, capable of hitting targets at ranges of 350 kms, reached the predefined target in the Bay of Bengal with a very high accuracy of better than 10 meters. All the Radars, Electro optical systems located along the coast had tracked and monitored all the parameters of the Missile throughout the flight path. An Indian Naval ship located near the target witnessed the final event. 

The flight test of the PRITHVI-II Missile met all the Mission objectives and was perfect like text book launch. PRITHVI-II Missile has been successfully flight tested number of times as part of the training exercise and today’s launch again proves the reliable flight testing of PRITHVI. Scientific Adviser to Raksha Mantri Dr. V.K Saraswat congratulated all the scientists and other employees of DRDO and the Armed Forces associated with the successful flight test of PRITHVI (P-II).