Evaluating the arsenal

The army faces a shortage of the modern battlefield's most lethal killer

The army’s two mechanised strike corps, which are meant to arrow deep into enemy territory during wartime, have over the last five years been equipped with five artillery regiments (100 guns), called the K-9 Vajra. These 155 millimetre/52-calibre, tracked, self-propelled (SP) artillery guns have been built by Larsen & Toubro under licence from Korean firm, Hanwha Techwin. While the influx of guns is welcome, the number acquired is clearly inadequate, given that each strike corps is authorised four medium SP regiments, each with 20 howitzers.

Given this shortfall, the army and the Ministry of Defence (MoD) are weighing whether to