By A Correspondent
New Delhi: India has taken a major step towards strengthening its infantry’s anti-armour capabilities with the successful flight test of the third-generation Man Portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile (MPATGM), a fully indigenous “fire-and-forget” weapon designed to destroy modern battle tanks.
The missile was successfully tested a day earlier, on January 11, 2026, against a moving armoured target at the KK Ranges in Ahilya Nagar, Maharashtra, marking a critical milestone that clears the path for the weapon’s induction into the Indian Army, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) said on January 12, 2026, in a PIB statement.
According to DRDO, the MPATGM demonstrated its top-attack mode, a capability that allows the missile to strike enemy tanks at their most vulnerable point—the turret roof, significantly enhancing kill probability against contemporary main battle tanks equipped with advanced protection systems.
Indigenous and High-End Technology
The MPATGM has been developed by DRDO’s Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), based in Hyderabad, and integrates a suite of cutting-edge indigenous technologies.
These include an Imaging Infrared (IIR) homing seeker for autonomous guidance, an all-electric control actuation system, a modern fire control system, a tandem warhead capable of defeating explosive reactive armour, an advanced propulsion system, and a high-performance sighting system, DRDO said.
Several DRDO laboratories contributed to the programme, underlining its pan-India R&D footprint: Research Centre Imarat at Hyderabad, Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory at Chandigarh, High Energy Materials Research Laboratory at Pune, and Instruments Research and Development Establishment at Dehradun.
To realistically simulate an enemy tank during the trial, a Thermal Target System was developed by the Defence Laboratory, based in Jodhpur, enabling accurate validation of the missile’s seeker performance.
All-Weather and Day-Night Capability
The DRDO said the IIR seeker is fully capable of day and night operations, allowing troops to engage targets in low visibility and adverse battlefield conditions.
The missile can be launched from a portable tripod or a military vehicle-mounted launcher, giving the Army operational flexibility across varied terrains, including mountains and deserts, it said.
Industry Partnership and Self-Reliant India Push
State-owned defence majors Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) and Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) are the Development-cum-Production Partners (DcPP) for the MPATGM programme, aligning with the government’s push to deepen industry participation in defence manufacturing.
India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated DRDO, its industry partners, and the development teams, calling the successful test an important milestone towards ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ (Self-Reliant India) in defence.
Road to Indian Army Induction
DRDO Chairman and Department of Defence R&D Secretary, Dr. Samir V. Kamat, said the missile met all trial objectives. “The successful engagement of the trial target is a major achievement and will now lead the weapon system towards induction into the Indian Army,” he said.
Once inducted, the MPATGM is expected to significantly enhance the Indian Army’s close-combat anti-tank capability, reduce dependence on imported systems, and bolster India’s indigenous defence ecosystem amid evolving battlefield threats.
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