New Delhi: To support the production of 114 of the first-ever long-range artillery gun, 'Dhanush,' the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) has been given "bulk production clearance" (BPC) from the Indian Army and the Ministry of Defence. With a day and night direct firing system, the indigenous 155mm x 45 calibre artillery gun is also equipped with onboard ballistic computation, auto-laying facility and navigation-based sighting system,
Considered to be a major success of the government's 'Make in India,' the weapon is the first long-range artillery gun to be produced in India, with the self-propulsion unit making the gun easily manoeuvrable in mountainous terrains. The artillery gun has also been mechanically upgraded to fire standard NATO 155 mm ammunition.
Dhanush's performance has been assessed under demanding conditions in several phases. The guns travelled extensively in towed and self-propelled mode in deserts and high-altitude terrains, with each gun clocking over 1600 km.
Initially, the manufacture of a modern artillery gun was viewed as a challenge for OFB since it was supposed to change the vision parameters to 155 x 45 calibre from 155 x 39 calibre. The organisation was given the transfer of technology (ToT) documents relating to the 155×39 calibre and then they converted it to 155×45 calibre.
Defence public sector undertakings (DPSUs) like Bharat Electronics Limited, the Directorate General of Quality Assurance (DGQA), Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), public sector undertakings including Steel Authority of India Limited, and many other private sector enterprises contributed to the making of 'Dhanush,' along with the OFB and the Indian Army.