New Delhi: On 26 February 2008, India test fired its first undersea ballistic missile, Sagarika, from a pontoon, 10 km off the coast of Visakhapatnam. It proved that India has acquired the capability to launch missiles from underwater.
The Sagarika missile with a range of 700km, will equip the country's indigenous nuclear submarine, which finds India joining the US, Russia, France and China that also possess this capability.
Moreover, the successful test firing enhances the country's nuclear deterrence, as sea-launched missiles will form a crucial part of the country's second strike nuclear capability.
It can be equipped with nuclear or conventional warheads, and has the latest technologies in aerodynamics, control and guidance and navigation.
