Pralay For China - India To Deploy Tactical Ballistic Missiles Along LAC

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What will we read in this Article-”Pralay For China?”

In this article ”Pralay For China” will read about What is Pralay?, Why Pralay is in news?, Sino-India Dispute, Key Specifications of Pralay Missile System, DRDO, LAC, etc.

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Why Pralay is in news?

In a major decision, the Defence Ministry has cleared the procurement of around 120 Pralay ballistic missiles for the Indian armed forces that will deploy them along the borders with China and Pakistan.
‘Pralay’ is a quasi-ballistic surface-to-surface missile. The advanced missile has been developed in a way to be able to defeat interceptor missiles.

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Background

The Pralay missile system started getting development around 2015 and the development of such a capability was given a push by the late Gen Bipin Rawat as Chief of Army Staff.

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Flight Test of Pralay

The maiden flight test of indigenously developed surface-to-surface missile ‘Pralay’ was successfully conducted by DRDO from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island in December 2021.
The missile can be launched from a mobile launcher. This was a new generation missile equipped with modern technologies and induction of this weapon system will give necessary impetus to the Armed Forces.
The missile was successfully tested twice on consecutive days last year on December 21 and December 22.

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Why is India’s Pralay missile a Unique Weapon?

Meaning: Pralay is a Hindi word that means “to be completely destroyed” or “to cause a lot of damage” (great destruction or damage).
Who Developed?: The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is responsible for making Pralay.
Quasi Ballistic Trajectory: The Pralay missile followed the desired Quasi Ballistic Trajectory – a low curved path an object takes after being thrown or shot. It can also perform a change in direction and change range. It hit its target with high accuracy, proving that the control guidance and mission algorithms worked. Missile guidance is a term for how a missile or guided bomb can be led to its target.
Canisterised missile: Pralay is a Canisterised missile that can be carried in a strong metal container that holds chemicals or gases.
Tactical missile: Tactical missiles are shorter-range weapons designed for use in the immediate combat area. Most of the time, the range is less than 300 km. Most tactical ballistic missiles are mobile, so they can stay alive and be used quickly. They can also carry a variety of warheads to hit their targets.
Surface-to-Surface missile: Pralay is a Surface-to-Surface missile that is almost like a ballistic missile. The advanced missile was made in a way that made it hard for interceptors to stop it. To defeat the anti-missile systems, it can change its flight path after going a certain distance.
Difficult To Intercept: At present, the Pralay ballistic missiles can take out targets from 150 to 500 kms and are extremely difficult to intercept for the enemy through interceptor missiles.
Path Changing Capacity: Pralay has the ability to change its path after covering a certain range in midair.
‘Pralay’ is powered by a solid propellant rocket motor and other new technologies. The missile guidance system includes state-of-the-art navigation and integrated avionics.

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Why Armed Forces Chose Pralay?

A Better Replacement of Prithvi

It is designed to replace Prithvi Missile in the Indian forces inventory. The difference is that the Prithvi missile is a liquid-fuelled missile that is very difficult to handle and must be refuelled before the launch. Liquid fuels are very corrosive, meaning they destroy the metal container they are stored in. In a missile, if liquid fuel is stored for a long time, the missile material will be damaged or may even leak.
Pralay is a solid fuelled and has got the most updated electronics. Prithvi was one of the first missiles to be inducted into the Indian arsenal in the 1990s. Pralay can be stored in battle-ready conditions for a long time and can be fired faster, unlike fuel-filled Prithvi missiles.
Prithvi missiles have been upgraded in between and have now come to their end of life and Pralay missiles have been ordered by the Indian Armed Forces.

Better than BrahMos for Short Range

India also has a BrahMos supersonic cruise missile for the same purpose, but it costs around 22 Crores. It is expected that the Pralay will cost one-third of this.
BrahMos can only carry about 200 kgs of weight. Because of this, the Indian Army has felt the need for a missile with a range of more than 150 kilometres that can also carry a bigger payload. This missile has a range of 150 to 500 kilometres, depending on the size of the warhead.
The Pralay missile can carry between 350 kilogrammes and 700 kilogrammes of High Explosive Preformed Fragmentation Warhead, Penetration Cum Blast (PCB), or Runaway Denial Penetration Submunition (RDPS).

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Is it a policy shift of India’s Military Tactics?

The acquisition of Pralay ballistic missiles is being seen as a big development for the country which now has a policy that allows the use of ballistic missiles in tactical roles. Both China and Pakistan have ballistic missiles which are for tactical roles.
The proposal to induct Pralay missiles has been cleared at a time when the defence forces are working towards creating a dedicated rocket force which can take out enemy targets from long range. The Chinese military already has a dedicated rocket force.
The Pralay missile is like the Chinese Dongfeng 12, the Russian 9k 720 Iskander missile and the US Army’s Precision Strike Missile (PrSM).
The missile developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation is being further developed and its range can be extended significantly if the forces want it.
Defence watchers say such a missile system can be used for taking out long-range enemy air defence systems and also other high-value installations and weaponry.

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FAQs

Q. Who has Developed Pralay Missile?

Ans. The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is responsible for making Pralay.

Q. What is the range of Agni 5?

The range of Agni 5 is 5000 to 7000 km. With this range, Agni-V can bring almost the entire Asia, including the northernmost part of China, as well as some regions in Europe under its striking range.

Q. What is a tactical missile?

Ans. Tactical missiles are shorter-range weapons designed for use in the immediate combat area. Most of the time, the range is less than 300 km. Most tactical ballistic missiles are mobile, so they can stay alive and be used quickly. They can also carry a variety of warheads to hit their targets.