After the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) discovered a possible supply-chain scam involving counterfeit vital components, the Dhanush howitzer program—once hailed as a major success story of India’s homegrown defense capability—is now under intense examination, according to The Hindu.
When Delhi-based Sidh Sales Syndicate was charged with supplying fake “Wire Race Roller Bearings,” Dhanush—which was intended to be the replacement for the Bofors 155 mm artillery that was instrumental in the Kargil War—became the focus of a criminal inquiry.
Allegedly produced in Henan, China by Sino United Industries, these parts were fraudulently certified as “Made in Germany” in order to satisfy procurement requirements associated with reputable German supplier CRB.
According to CBI investigations, there may have been a criminal conspiracy involving fraud, deception, and corruption since officials at the Gun Carriage Factory (GCF), Jabalpur, allegedly neglected to stop the shipment despite quality control red lights suggesting dimensional defects.
The Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) escalated the issue to the CBI after the Ministry of Defense, after conducting a preliminary investigation, determined that the bearings supplied were of Chinese origin and not those stated under the purchase agreement.
Subhash Bhamre, a former minister of state for defense, reiterated that the deal required German-made CRB bearings. The integrity of the OFB’s vendor base, its supervision procedures, and the wider reliance on private supply chains for mission-critical defense gear have all been questioned in light of the discovery of fraudulent imports in a system meant to represent self-reliant manufacture.
Concerns regarding India’s plan for modernizing its artillery have grown as a result of this scandal. Examined is also the Army’s parallel Sharang upgrade program, which aims to fill capability gaps until Dhanush and ATAGS are completely deployed by upgrading outdated 130 mm M-46 guns into 155 mm weapons. Concerns regarding whether stopgap solutions are causing more problems than they are benefits for operational preparedness have been exacerbated by reports of subpar quality control and reliability problems in upgraded Sharang units.
These worries were further supported by the Comptroller and Auditor General’s (CAG) Report No. 6 of 2023, which harshly criticized the delays in providing both indigenous artillery systems and modernized firearms.
The CAG emphasized structural inefficiencies in defense production and procurement and cautioned that the extended delays were compromising operational readiness. The two setbacks, the CAG’s audit findings and the CBI’s ongoing fraud investigation, cloud India’s artillery modernization efforts and raise ongoing concerns about whether the Army’s combat requirements are being met by the pace of domestic initiatives.
Defense analysts contend that the Dhanush investigation reveals deep-seated structural problems in India’s defense manufacturing ecosystem, such as a lack of enforced traceability in imported sub-assemblies, poor quality control, reliance on dubious vendors, and lax accountability.
As India seeks to meet its defense-export goals and establish confidence in domestic initiatives like ATAGS, Mounted Gun Systems, and the impending howitzer derivatives for foreign purchasers, the dispute has arisen at a delicate moment.
The Ministry of Defence is currently under pressure to rebuild trust by implementing more stringent component vetting, bolstering public-private integration without sacrificing integrity, and guaranteeing accountability in oversight organizations such as the corporatized successor bodies of the OFB.
The Dhanush issue threatens to undermine New Delhi’s claim to be a growing defense exporter in the international market in addition to damaging the reputation of India’s premier artillery asset if remedial structural adjustments are not implemented quickly.
