After years of delay in the procurement of 1,580 towed guns for the Indian Army, it seems India is making some headway as the IFH-2000, developed by Singapore Technologies Kinetics (STK), arrives for the field trials. The IFH-2000 is the world’s first and longest in-service 155mm 52-calibre howitzer, which the Singapore Armed Forces have been using consistently. The Indian Army has been trying to equip its forces with modern artillery for a long time. The saga of trials for acquiring the 155mm, 52-calibre towed guns began in 2002 and continued till 2006, with the three key players being BAE Systems of UK, Israeli firm Soltam and South African company Denel. While Denel was blacklisted, the other two firms did not match the expectations of the Indian Army. Later, a fresh tender was floated in 2008, where BAE Systems and STK became the main contenders for delivering the guns.
