30 Years Post Bofors, India Gets First Artillery Guns From US

The howitzers are being procured for the Indian Army and will be deployed along the India-China border.

File photo of Indian soldiers carry shells near a Bofors FH-77B 155mm artillery gun. (Photo: Reuters)

Chasing away the ghost of the scandalous Bofors scandal that broke out nearly 30 years ago, two of the 145 M-777 ultra-light howitzers will arrive in India from the US on 18 May.

The artillery is part of a larger plan of deterrence against the Chinese forces and will be deployed along the India-China border.

It will be the first induction of the howitzers post the Bofors scandal that had hit the artillery modernisation of the Indian Army. The Army had not inducted any 155mm guns since the scandal as all plans of technological transfer of weapons with other countries had taken a hit.

The two howitzers will be taken to the Pokhran Range in Rajasthan for testing and "compilation of the firing tables" for subsequent use as per TOI report.

India has struck a government-to-government deal for 145 howitzers with the US at a cost of around $700 million. As per the deal, the first 25 guns will be bought directly from the US and the rest will be assembled in India.

Air-mobile howitzers ordered under the deal would be delivered starting March 2019.

A video displaying the newly inducted Howitzer guns was tweeted by ANI:

BAE Systems, which is the artillery-manufacturer, had selected Mahindra as its Indian partner. It said that the first two guns will land in India ahead of the schedule over the weekend.

We continue to support the US government in integrating its weapon systems with the Indian Army’s artillery modernisation programme.

Official, BAE Systems

The Indian government had also sealed a deal worth Rs 4,366 crore for 100 self-propelled howitzers with L&T earlier this week.

The Bofors scandal was a major political scandal of the 1980s and 1990s between India and Sweden. The scandal accused Rajiv Gandhi, who was the Prime Minister of India then, and other top officials in his government of receiving huge benefits from the Swedish arms company, Bofors. India had signed a $285 million contract with them.

As a result of the major backlash in the country, Bofors was banned from ever doing business in India.

(With inputs from PTI)