Prithvi-2 missile testfired successfully

India successfully testfired Prithvi-2 missile as partof a user trial by the Army from a test range off Odisha coast, on Wednesdaynight.

"Two Prithvi-2 missiles were test-fired consecutively and both tests met all parameters," the official said from the Interim Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur.

The trial of the missile, which has a strike range of 350 km, was carriedout from a mobile launcher from launch complex-3 of the ITR between 7 pm to7.15 pm, he said.

It was a routine trial, he said adding "The missile trajectory was tracked by radars, electro-optical tracking systems, and telemetry stations by the DRDO along the coast of Odisha".

As per official sources, the missile was randomly chosen from theproduction stock and the entire launch activity was carried out by StrategicForce Command (SFC) of the Army and monitored by scientists of Defence Researchand Development Organisation (DRDO) as part of the training exercise.

The downrange teams onboard a ship deployed near the designated impact point in the Bay of Bengal monitored the terminal events and splashdown.

Prithvi-2 is capable of carrying 500-1,000 kg of warheads and is powered by liquid propulsion twin engines, the sources said.

Already inducted into the armory of Indian defence forces in 2003, nine-meter tall 'Prithvi' was the first missile to have been developed by DRDO under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).