India successfully tests surface-to-air missile – Times of India

BALASORE: The Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Navy on Thursday successfully tested a short-range vertical launch surface-to-air missile from Chandipur, off the Odisha coast, defence officials said here. The test was conducted around 3 pm from the integrated test range at Chandipur, they said.
The flight test was carried out from a vertical rocket on the ground, aimed at a fast air target flying at low altitude.
According to them, the missile system successfully ‘tracked and attacked’ the target.
Defense officials said the purpose of the flight test was to validate several updated elements of the weapons system.
The system’s performance was ‘closely monitored and confirmed by various instruments’, such as the telemetry deployed at ITR Chandipur.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh praised the DRDO and Indian Navy teams for their performance and stated that this test proved the reliability and effectiveness of the VL-SRSAM weapon system.
DRDO Chairman Dr Samir V Kamat congratulated the teams and said the system will significantly enhance the operational capabilities of the Indian Navy and serve as a force multiplier.
Before the test, about 3,100 people living within 2.5 kilometres of the launch pad were shifted to temporary shelters, a Balasore district official said.
The district administration also informed these people that they would be shifted to temporary camps again on Friday.
People have been asked to move to temporary shelters from 5am and return to their villages once the government, the revenue officer, gives the green light.
These measures have been taken in consultation with the ITR authority in Chandipur for safety, he added.