Why in News?

• Two BrahMos Surface-to-Surface missile tests were conducted at Trak Island in the Andaman Nicobar group of islands.
• A surface-to-surface missile (SSM) or ground-to-ground missile (GGM) is a missile designed to be launched from the ground or the sea and strike targets on land or at sea.
• They may be fired from hand-held or vehicle-mounted devices, from fixed installations, or from a ship.

BrahMos:

• It is a medium-range ramjet supersonic cruise missile that can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft or land.
• It is a joint venture between the Russian Federation’s NPO Mashinostroyeniya and India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
• The name BrahMos is a portmanteau formed from the names of two rivers, Brahmaputra and Moskva of Russia.
• It is the world’s fastest anti-ship cruise missile in operation.