Agni-6 to put India in elite club

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Bengaluru: A new under-development long-range missile that will reach targets beyond the Agni-V’s range of 5,500 km is being developed, said V.K. Saraswat, scientific adviser to the Union defence minister and chief of DRDO,  on Friday.
Once the Agni-VI is developed, it’ll propel India into the elite club of nations with such a capability, which include the US and Russia.
Also being developed is a cruise missile defence programme to enable the armed forces to defend against low-flying cruise missiles and enemy aircraft.
Describing the long-range nuclear-capable Agni-VI ballistic missile as a “force multiplier”, Dr Saraswat said it will carry multiple warheads, allowing one weapon system to take out several targets at a time. While refusing to divulge the range of the new missile, he said the missile’s force multiplier capability would be because of its Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle capability.
“Agni-V is major strategic defence weapon. Now we want to make Agni-VI which would be a force multiplier,” the DRDO chief said.
Saraswat said he doesn’t consider criticism over delays in defence development projects as “DRDO bashing”, asserting indigeno-us development takes time.
Agni-V will be inducted in the year 2014
While Agni-V will be inducted into the armed forces by 2014 after user trials are conducted to evaluate the deterrence, contactless warfare and smart weapons are already on the drafting board of the Defence Research and Development Organisation, Dr V.K. Saraswat, director general of the DRDO and scientific advisor to the defence minister, disclosed.
Agni-VI, which will follow Agni-V, has already crossed the drawing board stage and is now under development, he added.
Avinash Chander, chief controller, missiles and strategic systems at DRDO, said in an exclusive interview, that while China has longer range inter-continental ballistic missiles like the DF 31 and nuclear ballistic missiles like the JL1, the need for such armaments depends on the threat perception of the specific country in question. 
In China's case, the threat is from the United States of America, while India’s case differs as threats are limited to only its neighbouring countries, and thus Agni-V and Agni-VI should suffice.
The missile man further added that the two main objectives with respect to Agni-V is to conduct more tests for a repeat performance and a cannisterised launch, after which it will be ready for induction into the armed forces.