{"id":69242,"date":"2024-07-15T14:45:17","date_gmt":"2024-07-15T14:45:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2024\/07\/15\/india-unveils-light-tank-designed-for-operations-near-the-china-border\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T01:10:44","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T01:10:44","slug":"india-unveils-light-tank-designed-for-operations-near-the-china-border","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2024\/07\/15\/india-unveils-light-tank-designed-for-operations-near-the-china-border\/","title":{"rendered":"India unveils light tank designed for operations near the China border"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand \u2014 India unveiled a prototype Zorawar light tank this month, as defense officials seek nimbler armored fighting vehicles suitable for the mountainous terrain along the border with China, where violence broke out in mid-2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Delhi released a request for information for new light tanks in April 2021, and it is unprecedented for India to produce a prototype armored vehicle so quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Zorawar results from public-private collaboration, with Larsen & Toubro (L&T for short) cooperating with the state-run Defence Research and Development Organisation, or DRDO. It was unveiled at L&T\u2019s plant in Hajira, Gujarat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Indian Army has so far ordered 59 tanks, but Samir V. Kamath, DRDO\u2019s chief, said the Zorawar would not be ready until 2027.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kamath noted the prototype had been produced in just a two-and-a-half-year period. \u201cAnd now the first prototype will undergo development trials over the next six months, and then we\u2019ll be ready to offer it to our users for user trials,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\t