New Delhi: Going by the tardy delivery of the indigenously produced advanced Bofors gun Dhanush to the Indian Army, it will be difficult to meet the March 2026 dateline, officials said. The Dhanush is the country’s first indigenously built artillery gun, being manufactured by Advanced Weapons and Equipment India Limited (AWEIL), previously a part of the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB).
“The first gun was inducted in April 2019 and till now not even two regiments have become operational. Going by the speed of delivery, it is unlikely that all the guns might be delivered in the remaining time,” said a top defence officer. One regiment comprises 18 guns.
The initial plan is to induct 114 guns with 80% indigenous content by 2026. Its indigenous content makes its maintenance easier in terms of spare parts’ availability. The cost of each gun, which also has electronic sites, is about Rs 14 crore, much lower than the per unit cost of Bofors. Dhanush can travel through difficult terrains and target enemy targets during the day and night. These guns, with upgrades, have been deployed along the LAC in Ladakh. The old Bofors gun was 155 mm 39 calibre with a firing range of around 30 kms. Dhanush which fires up to 36 kms has around 877mm longer barrel. The system also has many more modern equipment and technology onboard helping in precise targeting with heavier ordnance.
In addition, the artillery is in the process of inducting other 155 mm gun systems, including 300 Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS), 300 Mounted Gun Systems (MGS) and 400 Towed Gun System (TGS). The Army has inducted 100 155mm/52 calibre K9 Vajra-T guns for which a $720 million contract was signed in 2017.
The plans of the Army include inducting 100 more K9 Vajra-T guns. “The Army aims to standardise its bulk of the guns to 155mm/52 calibre,” said Lieutenant General Adosh Kumar, DG, artillery. He said 155mm guns will be the standard calibre of all artillery guns by 2042. Lt Gen Kumar said, “The Army has prepared plans for the next 25 years. We have a plan for 2027, for 2047, and even for 2042.”
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