K4 missile is the biggest superweapon in India’s hand at this moment.

Let’s talk about how powerful India has become with this new missile.

K4 is a nuclear-capable missile.

K4 has official range of 3500 km.

If we think about Agni-5, it’s official range is 5000 km. But Chinese media claimed that it’s actual range is 8000 km. With this range whole China (India’s biggest threat) can be covered. That’s why China always criticized whenever India tested Agni-5 missile and they consider it a ‘threat’ to them.

China's State Media: India Missile Test a 'Direct Threat'

So same thing is likely for K4. When it’s official range is 3500 km, it’s actual hidden range should be higher. Also, 3500 km range is with 2.5 ton payload (which is higher than Agni-5’s capacity of 1.5 ton). With lighter payload, it can be higher again. Unofficial sources claimed that with lighter payload, K4’s actual range can even be 5000 km. K4 is also a highly accurate missile. (DRDO is expert in it because Agni-5 itself is the most accurate ICBM in the world)

Now, that’s not the end of story.

K4 is an SLBM (Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile).

K-15 (K4’s small brother with 750–1500 km range, K4 doesn’t have any clear picture in public)

India has the SSBN Arihant class submarines which will carry K4 missiles. SSBN means: Nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine. India is building 4 such submarines. One (S2 or INS Arihant) is operational and another (S3 or INS Arighat) is in advanced stage of construction.

Arihant, being a submarine, can hide under sea for indefinite time. Even if an enemy country launches nuclear strike first and destroys all land and air-based platforms, still no one can destroy a submarine which is silently hidden under sea. Even if it needs to return to dock, India is building the underwater naval base ‘INS Varsha’ near Visakhapatnam for Indian nuclear submarines. So when the nuclear submarines are in dock and not in mission and when they are in sea for a mission- no one can know. So all these enable a guaranteed retaliation. It’s called the ‘nuclear Second strike capability’.

Also, Arihant class submarines are powered by nuclear reactors. It means, they have limitless endurance i.e. they can run indefinitely without any refueling for years. So K4 equipped Arihant can go anywhere under ocean which means any country in the world can be within the range of Arihant+K4 combination. Also, in such a mission, Arihant needs not to take the risk of moving too close to a country as K4 itself has a very long range of 3500–5000 km.

So what all of the above means? If an enemy country launches nuclear attack on India and manages to destroy all land and air-based nuclear platforms, still they cannot destroy the 3rd arm of Indian nuclear deterrence- the SSBN- and India can reply with a retaliatory nuclear strike whoever that enemy country is. It’s called the ‘nuclear triad’ (capability to launch nuclear attack from land, air and sea) and it gives India the ‘credible minimum deterrence’ against any hostile nuclear enemy. So, when this ‘MAD’ (Mutually Assured Destruction’) is there, no enemy country will dare to launch nuclear strike on India in the first place. That’s what K4+Arihant+INS Varsha combo gives India.

coverage of K4 (with official range of 3500 km) when launched from Bay of Bengal

P.S.: If all of the above is still not enough, K5 missile, with official range of 5000 km, is under development and coming soon. They will equip the S4 and S4* SSBN (3rd and 4th submarines of the Arihant class which are under construction) and also much bigger SSBN called ‘S5 class submarines’ which are planned to be built this decade and in design phase now.

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