India’s Alleged Underground Missile Network: Strategic Facilities, Tunnels & Regional Security (2025 Analysis)

India’s expanding missile infrastructure has become a major topic in global defense and geopolitical analysis. In recent years, multiple defense observers and satellite imagery assessments have suggested the development of underground missile facilities and mountain-based tunnels across strategic regions of India.

These developments are widely analyzed in the context of regional security dynamics involving South Asia and the Indo-Pacific, particularly concerning India’s strategic posture toward neighboring states such as Pakistan and China.

This article presents a research-based overview (updated to 2025) of locations frequently cited in defense discussions, relying on open-source intelligence (OSINT), satellite analysis, and publicly available defense assessments.

Why Underground Missile Infrastructure Matters

Underground missile facilities provide several strategic advantages:

• • Enhanced survivability against first-strike scenarios
  • Greater concealment from satellite and aerial surveillance
  • Improved second-strike capability
  • Strategic deterrence signaling in contested regions

For global investors, policymakers, and security analysts, these developments directly affect regional stability, defense spending trends, and international alliances—topics that consistently attract high-CPM advertising.

1. Key Alleged Underground Missile Facilities in India

Jangalapalle, Andhra Pradesh

Defense analysts frequently reference Jangalapalle as a suspected underground missile complex located approximately 300 km inland from India’s eastern coastline.

Satellite imagery reportedly reveals:

• • Multiple tunnel entrances
  • Extensive underground excavation
  • Hardened storage structures

The site is commonly associated with Agni-series ballistic missiles, forming part of India’s long-range deterrence architecture.

Naval Underground Infrastructure Near Kakinada

A naval installation near Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh, is believed to include underground submarine pens and missile storage areas. Completed around 2025, this facility is often linked to India’s sea-based nuclear deterrent strategy.

Maritime analysts suggest such infrastructure strengthens India’s second-strike capability in the Bay of Bengal and the wider Indo-Pacific region.

Andaman and Nicobar Islands: Strategic Outpost

The Andaman and Nicobar Islands occupy a crucial geostrategic position near the Malacca Strait, one of the world’s most important maritime trade routes.

Defense discussions indicate potential plans for:

• • Hardened underground missile silos
  • Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) support systems

If operationalized, these installations could significantly impact regional naval balance and global trade security, making them of high interest to international audiences.

• • 2. Missile Tunnels in India’s Mountain Regions

Himalayan Missile Tunnel Network

Reports suggest that in regions such as Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, and Ladakh, India has developed mountain tunnels capable of storing and potentially launching long-range missile systems, including Agni-V ICBMs.

These tunnels are reportedly:

• • Camouflaged within mountainous terrain
  • Connected to logistics and transport corridors
  • Designed for rapid missile mobility and concealment

Tactical Missile Storage in Border States

In border areas including Assam, Jammu & Kashmir, and Arunachal Pradesh, multipurpose tunnels are believed to store short-range and tactical missile systems such as BrahMos and Prithvi.

Construction reportedly began around 2022, with several sites reaching operational readiness by 2025.

Railway-Based Missile Mobility

One of the most discussed strategic concepts involves the use of railway tunnels under mountainous regions to conceal rail-based missile platforms, such as Agni-Prime.

Military analysts note that rail-mobile missile systems:

• • Increase deployment flexibility
  • Reduce detection probability
  • Enhance deterrence through unpredictability

The Sela Tunnel: Dual-Use Potential

Officially presented as a high-altitude transportation project, the Sela Tunnel in Arunachal Pradesh has drawn analytical attention due to its potential dual-use military logistics capability.

While primarily civilian in nature, its strategic location near contested borders has led analysts to assess its possible role in military mobility planning.

Strategic Forces Command & Defense Policy Context

Most of these facilities are believed to fall under India’s Strategic Forces Command (SFC) and align with broader defense modernization and self-reliance initiatives.

From a global perspective, these developments are closely watched due to:

• • Rising defense budgets in Asia
  • Western defense partnerships
  • Shifting power balances in the Indo-Pacific