DRDO successfully tests Pinaka Long-Range Guided Rocket at 60-km minimum range
New Delhi. The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on July 8 successfully conducted the flight test of the indigenous Pinaka Long-Range Guided Rocket (LRGR) from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur in Odisha, marking another milestone in India’s efforts to strengthen its indigenous precision strike capabilities.
The rocket was tested for a user-defined minimum range of 60 km and successfully executed all planned in-flight manoeuvres before striking the designated target with “textbook precision”, exactly following the predicted trajectory, according to the Ministry of Defence.
The ministry said all range instrumentation deployed for the trial tracked the rocket throughout its flight, validating its performance and guidance systems.
The Pinaka LRGR has been designed by DRDO’s Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) in collaboration with the High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL), with technical support from the Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL) and the Research Centre Imarat (RCI).
The flight trial was coordinated by the ITR and the Proof and Experimental Establishment (PXE).
The rocket was launched from the Indian Army’s in-service Pinaka launcher, demonstrating the platform’s ability to fire different variants of the Pinaka rocket system with varying ranges from the same launcher, thereby enhancing its operational flexibility.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated the DRDO, the Indian Army and industry partners on the successful test, describing it as a major milestone in India’s indigenous design and development capabilities for long-range guided rocket systems.
Defence Secretary and DRDO Chairman Rajesh Kumar Singh, who closely monitored the trials, also congratulated the scientists, engineers and all teams involved in the successful flight test.
The successful trial is expected to further bolster the operational capability of the Pinaka multi-barrel rocket launcher system, a key component of the Indian Army’s long-range artillery arsenal, while reinforcing the country’s push for self-reliance in advanced defence technologies under the ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ initiative.
