Arjun: Comparative trials next month in Rajasthan

The five production-series tank have been sitting at the DRDO Heavy Vehicles Factory (HVF) outside Chennai ever since they were ‘‘handed over’’ to the Army in August last year. In fact, the comparative trials were ordered partially because of General Pervez Musharraf’s comments in New York last year, stating that Pakistan’s homegrown Al-Khalid MBT was superior to the Arjun.

The 43rd Armoured Regiment currently operates 14 pre-production Arjun tanks. The Army now wants to try the five production specimens at the Mahajan ranges as they will reflect changes made on the pre-production specimens.

It also insists on the five new tanks crucially because the exercises encompass the Army’s trial by fire of certain concepts in its new war doctrine.

Choosing June for the comparative trials is also significant because of previous concerns on over-heating of a pre-production tank.

Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee said during the winter session of Parliament that the tanks had been undergoing a joint-resident inspection (JRI) at the HVF, which was taking time. But it is now evident that the inspection was only one of the reasons for the inordinate delays —conventional rail freight trolleys were not wide or strong enough to carry the 58 ton Arjun tanks.

In fact, the Arjun’s size and weight, and consequently mobility, continue to concern the Army, and were some of the reasons that the trials were ordered in the first place.

Another grouse with the Army is that the ‘‘indigenously developed’’ tank is still 50 pc constituted of imported components, including its engine, which could pose serious problems when it comes to spares supply and maintenance.

In fact, Army chief Gen J.J. Singh indicated earlier this year that the Armoured Corps would settle for a mix of the Arjun, T-90 and T-72. This, evidently, erodes the initial vision for Project Arjun, which conceived the development of a main battle tank to be supplied in large numbers to the Armoured Corps.