According to the publication "India Defense", with reference to the representative of the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) of the Ministry of Defense of India, the main battle tank (MBT) "Arjun" Mk.2 intended for the Land Forces (Land Forces) of the country will go into serial production in 2014 year.
In March 2000, with the Office of Development of Military Vehicles (CVRDE), which is part of the DRDO of the Indian Army, a contract was signed for the supply of the first batch of MBT "Arjun" Mk.1, in the amount of 124 vehicles to equip two regiments, the contract value is 17.6 billion rupees. In May 2010, another contract was signed for the supply of the same number of MBTs. The production of tanks is carried out at the heavy machinery plant (HVF) in Avadi.
Also in 2010, the Indian Ministry of Defense gave permission to develop a new version of the MBT "Arjun". It is planned to purchase 124 Arjun Mk.2 tanks for the Indian ground forces. Acceptance tests are scheduled for 2012.
The first stage of joint trials of DRDO and the country's ground forces will take place in June 2011. The second is scheduled for the first half of 2012.
The delivery of new MBTs to the troops will be carried out in two stages. In Phase-1, 45 Arjun Mk.2 tanks with 56 modifications completed, including equipping with a missile system and a panoramic sight of the commander, will be transferred. The remaining 79 vehicles will be delivered in Phase-2, which will receive all 93 planned improvements. The total cost of 124 MBT "Arjun" Mk.2 is estimated at 50 billion rupees.
As mentioned above, 93 modifications are planned to be made to the design of the Arjun Mk.1 tank, including missile systems for hitting ground targets at long range, protection from attack helicopters, an improved anti-aircraft machine gun and a night vision system.
Explosive reactive armor will be placed throughout the MBT hull in the form of metal elements.
It is also planned, a year after the start of serial production of the MBT "Arjun" Mk.2, to replace the German power plant with a national engine. The transmission of the tank will also undergo modernization.
