India to develop anti-missile defence system by 2010
INDIA, India will develop an indigenous defence system to intercept
and destroy ballistic missiles by 2010, a defence official said.
The system was currently being designed and would go on trial from
2009, said V.K. Saraswat, the chief controller of the Defence Research
and Development Organisation.
It would be capable of detecting, intercepting and destroying
intermediate-range and intercontinental ballistic missiles from any
country, he added on the sidelines of a science conference that ended
Monday.
"We are developing a robust anti-missile defence system that will
have high-speed interceptions for engaging ballistic missiles in the
5,000-kilometre (3,000-mile) class and above," he said.
India had recently shown it was able to handle targets in the class
up to 2,000-2,500 kilometres, he added. The country would join Israel,
Russia and the US in developing and possessing such technology once the
system is rolled out.
The defence system's tracking and fire control radars have been
developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation in
collaboration with Israel and France, he said.
Nuclear-capable India also plans to test-fire in mid-2009 a missile
capable of hitting targets at a distance of up to 6,000 kilometres,
Saraswat said.
A missile with a range of 3,000 kilometres was successfully
test-fired last year from Wheeler Island off the eastern coast.
India has fought three wars with Pakistan and one with China since
independence from British rule in 1947.
Visakhapatnam, Tuesday, AFP |