New Dhanush 155mm towed howitzer made first appearance at 68th India Republic Day Parade 12701174

Defense & Security News - India
 
New Dhanush 155mm towed howitzer made first appearance at 68th India Republic Day Parade.
The latest local-made Dhanush 155 mm towed arillery gun system made first appearance at the 68th Republic Day military parade in New Delhi, India, on Thursday, January 26, 2017. The gun was part of the military parade with the Army's mechanised troops along with Akash air defense missile system and the BrahMos surface-to-air supersonic cruise missile.
     
The latest local-made Dhanush 155 mm towed arillery gun system made first appearance at the 68th Republic Day military parade in New Delhi, India, on Thursday, January 26, 2017. The gun was part of the military parade with the Army's mechanised troops along with Akash air defense missile system and the BrahMos surface-to-air supersonic cruise missile. India’s first indigenous, long-range 155mm artillery gun ‘Dhanush’ will be showcased for the first time in the Republic Day Parade in New Delhi, on January 26, 2017. (Photo by Tribhuvan Tiwari/Outlook)
     
The new Dhanush 155mm towed howitzer was developed by the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) and manufactured by Jabalpur-based Gun Carriage Factory (GCF).

January 12, 2017, the Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has announced that after successful field trials of indigenously developed howitzer Dhanush, India was in final stages of ordering another 155mm self-propelled gun.

The Dhanush 155 mm/52 calibre artillery gun is a towed howitzer being developed for the Indian Army based on the Bofors FHB02. The Indian Army had been looking for a total of 114 Dhanush guns from GCF to increase its firepower especially in the artillery area.

In the Artillery modernisation plan, the Indian army needs 814 Mounted Guns, 1580 Towed Guns, 100 tracked Self Propelled guns,180 wheeled Self Propelled guns and 145 Ultra Light Howitzers.

The Dhanush is a 155 mm/45 calibre, the use of a longer barrel increases the maximum firing range. Currently, the Indian army standard towed howitzer is the Bofors 155mm/39 calibre which has a maximum effective range of 27 km, while the Dhanush can fire up to 38 km.