Dhanush, India's first long-range artillery gun, to undergo trial in Jaisalmer's Pokhran next week

NEW DELHI: India's first indigenous, long-range artillery gun 'Dhanush' is all set to take a test at Jaisalmer's Pokhran field firing range. The test will be conducted next week.

The trial will be carried out in presence of representatives of Indian Army technical officers and GCF experts. Along with the trial of its long-range firepower, the performance of 'Dhanush' in heat and other adverse conditions will also be tested.

'Dhanush' has been developed by Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) and manufactured by Jabalpur-based Gun Carriage Factory (GCF). The trial of 'Dhanush' which was going on for the last five years has initially faced some major hiccups over ammunition used.

Two years back, while the trial was going on, a shell had burst in the barrel owing to which further trial was stopped. The issue was, however, resolved after a successful upgradation in the Balasore range of Odisha.

Known Indian is an upgrade version of Sweden's Bofors gun, more 80 percent of its parts are built indigenously. Bofors could hit the target at a distance of 29km, while the Dhanush hit the target at a distance of 38km.

In comparison to Bofors working on hydraulic system, it operates under the electronic system. With the help of night vision device, it can hit targets in the night. It uses 125-mm shells and can fire 5 to 6 shells in a minute. More than 400 Dhanush guns are expected to be acquired by the Army.

(With inputs from DNA)