NEW DELHI: Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Monday hailed the successful flight test of the indigenous Third Generation Fire & Forget Man Portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile (MPATGM) with top attack capability, calling it an important step towards Aatmanirbhar Bharat.The missile was successfully flight-tested against a moving target on January 11 at the KK Ranges in Ahilya Nagar, Maharashtra, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Defence. The test was conducted by the Defence Research and Development Organisation’s Defence Research & Development Laboratory in Hyderabad. In a post on X, the defence minister’s office said, “Third Generation Fire & Forget Man Portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile (MPATGM) with top attack capability was flight tested successfully against moving target by the Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Hyderabad. Raksha Mantri Shri @rajnathsingh has complimented DRDO, DCPP Partners and Industry for the successful test of Fire & Forget Man Portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile with top attack capability and termed it an important step towards AatmanirbharBharat.”According to the defence ministry, the indigenously developed MPATGM incorporates several advanced indigenous technologies, including an Imaging Infrared homing seeker, all-electric control actuation system, fire control system, tandem warhead, propulsion system and a high-performance sighting system. These systems have been developed by multiple DRDO laboratories, including Research Centre Imarat in Hyderabad, Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory in Chandigarh, High Energy Materials Research Laboratory in Pune and Instruments Research & Development Establishment in Dehradun. The Thermal Target System used during the trial was developed by Defence Laboratory, Jodhpur to simulate a target tank. The Imaging Infrared seeker provides day and night combat capability, while the warhead is designed to defeat modern main battle tanks. The missile can be launched from a tripod or a military vehicle-mounted launcher.Bharat Dynamics Limited and Bharat Electronics Limited are the Development-Cum-Production Partners for the weapon system.Rajnath Singh congratulated DRDO, the DcPP partners and the defence industry for the successful test, reiterating that it marked an important step towards Aatmanirbhar Bharat.Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman DRDO Dr Samir V Kamat also congratulated the team, saying the trial had been conducted successfully and would lead to the weapon system’s induction into the Indian Army, the release added.
