Army Inducts Excalibur Artillery Ammunition and Dhanush Howitzers

News:Indian army has inducted US made precision-guided Excalibur artillery ammunition and indigenous Dhanush howitzer in its inventory.

Facts:

About Excalibur artillery ammunition:

• The Excalibur ammunition can hit targets within 50 km range with less than 2 metres error margin. 
• The ammunition also has the capability to destroy reinforced structures or bunkers.
• The ammunition will be advantageous for the Indian army stationed at the borders as it has GPS and inertial navigation which guides the warhead to its precise location to help avoid collateral damage.

About Dhanush:

• Dhanush is an upgraded version of the Swedish Bofors gun procured by India in the mid-1980s.
• It is a 155-mm, 45-calibre gun with a maximum range of 40 km in salvo mode.
• The gun has been developed by Ordnance Factory Board (OFB), Kolkata and manufactured by the Gun Carriage Factory(GCF) and 81 % of its components are indigenously sourced.
• The gun is a versatile weapon that can operate in all the climatic conditions. 
• It is equipped with (a)inertial navigation-based sighting system (b) auto-laying facility (c)on-board ballistic computation and (d)advanced day-night direct firing system.