Recent reports suggest India's Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, Odisha, is preparing for a significant missile test, widely speculated to be the Agni-VI, a potential Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) with an anticipated range of 8,000 to 10,000 kilometers, though some claims suggest up to 12,000 kilometers. In preparation for this possible trial from Launch Complex-3, over 11,000 residents have been temporarily evacuated from the Balasore district, a standard safety protocol for such events, with plans for their return post-test. The Agni-VI is expected to surpass the Agni-V in range and feature Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle (MIRV) capabilities, building on India's recent successful MIRV-equipped Agni missile flight trial in May, which demonstrated the nation's capacity to strike multiple targets with a single launch.

Recent reports suggest India's Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, Odisha, is preparing for a significant missile test, widely speculated to be the Agni-VI, a potential Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) with an anticipated range of 8,000 to 10,000 kilometers, though some claims suggest up to 12,000 kilometers. In preparation for this possible trial from Launch Complex-3, over 11,000 residents have been temporarily evacuated from the Balasore district, a standard safety protocol for such events, with plans for their return post-test. The Agni-VI is expected to surpass the Agni-V in range and feature Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle (MIRV) capabilities, building on India's recent successful MIRV-equipped Agni missile flight trial in May, which demonstrated the nation's capacity to strike multiple targets with a single launch.

Recent reports suggest India's Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, Odisha, is preparing for a significant missile test, widely speculated to be the Agni-VI, a potential Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) with an anticipated range of 8,000 to 10,000 kilometers, though some claims suggest up to 12,000 kilometers. In preparation for this possible trial from Launch Complex-3, over 11,000 residents have been temporarily evacuated from the Balasore district, a standard safety protocol for such events, with plans for their return post-test. The Agni-VI is expected to surpass the Agni-V in range and feature Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle (MIRV) capabilities, building on India's recent successful MIRV-equipped Agni missile flight trial in May, which demonstrated the nation's capacity to strike multiple targets with a single launch.

A few weeks ago, former Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) chairman Samir V. Kamat had said that they were ready to go ahead with the Agni-VI ballistic missile programme.

"It is the government's decision. We are ready whenever the government gives us the go-ahead," he had said while speaking about the Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) programme.

Now, media reports suggest that the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur in Odisha, a test and evaluation (T&E) centre of DRDO, is gearing up for a missile test, possibly Agni-VI—the latest variant from DRDO's nuclear-capable Agni Ballistic Missile series. The missile is expected range of 8,000 to 10,000 kilometres, although there are media claims of the missile having a range between 10,000 to 12,000 kms, placing it in the category of ICBMs.

While there has been no official communication regarding the test, more than 11,000 residents have been evacuated from Balasore district in Odisha in view of a possible missile trial from Launch Complex-3 (LC-3) at the Chandipur facility.

According to a report by Firstpost, and as per standard safety protocols, the district administration carried out an evacuation drive in villages located near the launch complex and temporarily relocated nearly 11,442 people.

Residents will be allowed to return to their homes after the completion of the test, the report said.

Agni-VI is expected to have a longer range and Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle (MIRV) capability compared to the Agni-V.

Earlier in May, the Defence Ministry confirmed that DRDO had conducted a successful flight trial of an advanced Agni missile equipped with a Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle (MIRV) system from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island, Odisha. The missile was tested with multiple payloads targeting different locations spatially distributed over a large geographical area in the Indian Ocean Region.

With this successful trial, India once again demonstrated its capability to target multiple strategic objectives using a single missile system, the Defence Ministry had said.

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