Explained: Gunners Day and the role of artillery in the Indian Army

The Artillery Regiment of the Indian Army celebrates the 193rd Artillery Day today. (Source: Twitter / @ SpokespersonMoD)

The Artillery Regiment of the Indian Army celebrates 193rd Gunners Day today marking the date in 1827 when the Five Bombay Mountain Battery, equipped with 2.5 inch guns, was raised in the British Indian Army.

The artillery and its gunners

One of the basic lessons of warfare is that the greater the distance from which you can target the enemy, the greater the flexibility that can be achieved for ground maneuvers. From catapults and cannons used in ancient times, the evolution of mechanical projectiles, to modern artillery cannons integrating with network-centric warfare, the role of gunners has always been a winning factor in the field of battle, proving to be a crucial support. system to the other combat weapons.

The artillery of Mughals, Marathas and those of the Sikh armies, among other historical entities, have played an important role in their successful campaigns. The founding of the Artillery Regiment was laid on September 28, 1827 when the Bombay Artillery, later renamed the 5 Bombay Mountain Battery, was raised. This day is celebrated by the Artillery Regiment as Artillery Day.

In May 1857, the mutiny of Indian soldiers began in the artillery of the Bengal Presidential Army. The incident led to a total ban on Indian artillery units, except for mountain artillery batteries in selected provinces. The decision was reversed in the mid-1930s when the first of the field regiments, which support the other formations in the field, of the Indian army was raised.

With the motto ‘Sarvatra Izzat-O-Iqbal – Everywhere with honor and glory’, the regiment boasts of a Victoria Cross, a Distinguished Service Order, 15 Military Crosses during the pre-independence era and an Ashok Chakra, seven Maha Vir Chakras, nine Kirti Chakras, 101 Vir Chakras, 63 Shaurya Chakras, six Bar to Sena medals, 485 Sena medals plus many other decorations.

The current artillery

Today, the Indian Army Artillery consists of a dynamic inventory ranging from ballistic missiles, multi-barreled rocket launchers, high mobility weapons, precision guided munitions of mortars for the destruction of enemy targets to radars, non-air vehicles. manned and electro-optical devices to locate and perform Post Impact Damage Assessment (PSDA). The Artillery Regiment has played a key role in all post-independence conflicts with neighbors, including the Kargil War.

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The importance of artillery in conventional warfare remains intact, especially with artillery cannons playing an important role in “integrated battle groups”. These battle groups are formations that comprise artillery, mechanized infantry, and armored and infantry elements along with modern force multipliers like UAVs and electronic warfare systems. Artillery fire can be used for repressive and destructive purposes to dominate the enemy.

Approximately 30 years after the acquisition of the Bofors guns in the 1980s, which proved decisive in the Kargil war, two more artillery guns, the India-South Korean brand K9 Vajra and the US-origin M777 ultralight howitzers, They were inducted into the Indian Army in 2018. While the Dhanush of the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) is in the induction process, its Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS) is in its testing stages.

The evolving role of artillery

Along with its role on the conventional battlefield, artillery is being widely deployed and used in counterinsurgency (CI) battles. Previously, artillery used to be avoided in counterinsurgency operations due to concerns about collateral damage, but with the advent of precision munitions, its role has grown in importance. Artillery formations have been deployed in counterinsurgency operations in Jammu and Kashmir, as well as in the north-eastern theater of the Indian Army.

With the introduction of automatic and self-propelled artillery weapon systems, the artillery footprint has been reduced due to the elimination of auxiliary systems. These advancements have also helped increase the survivability of systems against enemy fire because it has also increased their ability to maneuver on all types of terrain. The introduction of ‘force multipliers’ such as satellite communications, unmanned aerial vehicles, electronic network systems and artificial intelligence have increased the effectiveness of artillery and have once again underlined its role as a decisive arm in the battlefield.

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