3 Review(s)

India had mastered missile technology from olden days, but it was left behind in this field when the Britishers ruled the country for hundreds of years, resulting in lack of resources, research environment and capabilities. This was the time when India decided to go ahead with its Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP), headed by eminent scientist and former President of India Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam who launched the first Satellite Launch Vehicle, SLV-3 putting the Rohini Satellite in orbit. The Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP) was an Indian Ministry of Defence programme for the research and development of the comprehensive range of missiles. The programme was managed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Ordnance Factories Board in partnership with other Indian government political organisations. The project started in 1982–83 with popular political support from the successive governments and bestowed under the leadership of Abdul Kalam who oversaw its ending in 2008 after these strategic missiles were successfully developed. The last major missile developed under the programme was the Agni 3 intermediate-range ballistic missile which was successfully tested on 9 July 2007. A new world order emerged after India carried out the nuclear experiment in May 1998 and became a nuclear-weapon state. Today, India is one of the few countries in the world to have indigenously developed missile systems including critical technologies like the re-entry tip for ballistic missiles. It is hoped that the book would be of great value to the researchers and students of defence studies and the common readers.