The Indian Army will soon be equipped with two types of artillery guns from the US and South Korea thus bolstering India’s military strength and making the borders safer. The K9-Vajra-T tracked self-propelled guns will be delivered to the Indian army by South Korea in September. The Indian Army will also receive M777 Ultra-Light howitzers from the US very soon.
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As reported by The Hindu, and covered by EurAsian Times, the Indian Army will get 10 artillery guns by September and the remaining 100 will be delivered by November 2020. This can be seen as a major overhaul to India’s military capabilities and its might, as these guns will add immense mobility and fire-power to India’s arsenal.
The defence deal between India and South Korea of 100 K9-Vajra-T tracked self-propelled guns will cost India INR 4500 crores. The K9 was agreed upon by the Indian Army after extensive trials were undertaken. These guns have been built under a joint venture between the Indian engineering firm Larsen and Turbo and Hanwa Techwin of South Korea. The contract between these two firms for the manufacturing of the K9 guns was signed in April 2017.
The first 10 guns will be imported from South Korea while the remaining ones will be built in India itself by Larsen and Turbo. The K9 guns have a range of 40 kilometres and are 155 mm, 52-calibre guns.
The induction process of the M777 Ultra-Light howitzers from the US is also going on schedule. The Indian Army will very soon begin the user trials of the US made M777 Ultra-Light howitzers before taking delivery.
The deal for the M777 Ultra-Light howitzers was signed between India and the US in November 2016 at a cost of $737 million under the foreign military sales program. These guns are very lightweight and can be easily transported using helicopters. These are 155 mm, 39 calibre artillery guns.
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