India test-fires nuclear-capable Agni, Prithvi missiles
New Delhi, Jul 17 (PTI): India on Thursday successfully test-fired nuclear-capable short range ballistic missiles Prithvi-II and Agni-I from an integrated test range off the Odisha coast, demonstrating its strategic deterrence capability.
The test-firing of the missiles, conducted by the elite Strategic Forces Command, validated all operational and technical parameters, according to the defence ministry.
On Wednesday, India successfully test-fired indigenously developed Akash Prime missile in Ladakh that has been customised to operate at an altitude above 4,500 metres.
The test-firing of the missiles came over two months after the May 7-10 military conflict between India and Pakistan.
The Prithvi-II missile has a range of around 350 kms and it is capable of carrying a payload of up to 500 kgs. It can carry both conventional as well as nuclear warheads.
The Agni-I missile has a range of 700-900 kms and it can carry a payload of 1,000 kgs.
Both Prithvi-II and Agni-I missiles have been an integral part of India's nuclear deterrence.
"Short-range ballistic missiles -- Prithvi-II and Agni-I -- were successfully test-fired from the Integrated Test Range in Chandipur, Odisha on July 17," the ministry said in a brief statement.
It said the launches "validated all operational and technical parameters. "These tests were conducted under the aegis of the Strategic Forces Command," the ministry said.
On test-firing of Akash missile, the ministry said it carries added significance as it follows the "exceptional performance" of India's indigenously developed air defence systems during Operation Sindoor.
Akash Prime is an upgraded variant of the Akash weapon system built for the Indian Army.
The test-firing of the missile in Ladakh assumed significance as it is close to the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
"India on July 16 achieved a significant milestone by successfully destroying two aerial high speed unmanned targets at high-altitude in Ladakh by Akash Prime, the upgraded variant of Akash weapon system for the Indian Army," the ministry said in a separate statement.
It said the weapon system is customised to operate in altitude above 4,500 metres and has latest upgrades including indigenously developed radio frequency seeker.
"Based on the operational feedbacks from users, various upgrades are made to improve the operational effectiveness, demonstrating the advantage of the ecosystem created for the indigenous weapon system," the defence ministry said.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh complimented the Indian Army, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), and the industry on this "remarkable achievement", it said.
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Rahul Gandhi demands 'clean, pure' voter list; says 'vote theft' issue will explode soon
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New Delhi (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday said the Opposition is protesting for the right to vote for every Indian and demanded a "clean and pure" voter list, asserting that the issue of alleged irregularities pointed out by him will "explode" soon as it is not related to a single constituency but the whole country.
Indicating that he would not submit a signed affidavit as sought by the Election Commission, Gandhi asserted that the data analysed by the Congress to provide "proof" of "vote theft" is taken from the EC website.
"This is their data. It is not my data that I should sign. It is their data only and has been taken from their website. This is only a move to distract," he told reporters.
The Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, who participated in a protest march by the opposition on the "vote theft" issue, said the Election Commission is "silent" as the truth is before the entire nation after his charge that over one lakh votes in an assembly constituency in Karnataka were found to be fake in a research conducted by his party.
"Another thing I want to tell is that this has not just happened in Bangalore, but in different constituencies across the country, and the Election Commission knows this. The EC knows that this data will explode. What it is trying to control and hide, we will bring it out, and it will explode. The EC knows this," he told reporters.
Gandhi was briefly detained along with others as police stopped the protest march by opposition MPs from Parliament House to the EC office.
"They (EC) cannot talk as the truth is before the entire nation," the Congress leader said as he was being taken away in a bus by the police.
"This fight is not political, but for saving the Constitution," he asserted.
This fight is for 'one man, one vote' and we want a clean, pure voter list," the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha added.
He said all the MPs of the INDIA alliance were stopped and taken into custody when they were going to meet the Election Commission.
"The truth of 'vote theft' is now before the country. This fight is not political; it is a fight to protect democracy, the Constitution, and the right to ‘one person, one vote’.
"The united opposition and every voter in the country demand a clean and transparent voter list. And, we will secure this right at all costs," Gandhi claimed in a post on X later.
Gandhi had on Thursday cited data from the 2024 Lok Sabha polls to claim that over 1 lakh votes were "stolen" through five types of manipulation in Mahadevapura assembly segment in Karnataka. He alleged there were 11,965 duplicate voters, 40,009 with fake and invalid addresses, 10,452 bulk voters or single-address voters, 4,132 voters with invalid photos and 33,692 voters misusing Form 6 of new voters.
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