Army looks to revive artillery gun plan with Israel to bridge critical gaps
The army is considering a proposal that could breathe back life into a stalled artillery gun-making program with Israel to cover a critical gap in its weapons profile amid continuing tension in Ladakh. Despite recent inductions like the K9 Vajra mobile artillery systems, internal assessments have flagged off a capability gap in the short term, given the slow pace of deliveries by the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) of the self-developed Dhanush towed artillery guns and the incomplete trials of the Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS).
Sources have confirmed that the army has received a proposal to drastically shorten the delivery period of the guns. The first six of them promised to be delivered within 10 months of signing a contract and the complete set of 400 guns to be in service by 2025. The Israeli company had been shortlisted as the lowest bidder in an international competition in 2019 after undergoing extensive tests by the army. However, the contract has not moved ahead for almost two years as India has been considering the ATAGS program as well.
Source: ET
