India fires Nag Mk 2 ATGM from Zorawar light tank

The DRDO is developing the 25 tonne ‘Zorawar' light tank to operate in India's northern border region. (Press Information Bureau)

India's state-owned Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has fired Nag Mk 2 anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) for the first time from the Indian Light Tank (ILT), also known as ‘Zorawar'.

The office of the minister of defence of India said in its official social media post on 17 October that the firing undertaken by the DRDO has achieved “all performance objectives, including the range, manoeuvrability for top-attack mode, and accuracy”. However, the post did not provide any additional information regarding the parameters and results of the firing activity.

According to the Ministry of Defence, the ILT is developed by DRDO's Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (CVRDE) and its production partner Larsen & Toubro (L&T).

Janes has previously reported that the Zorawar light tank prototype, which was unveiled at Defexpo 2022, is powered by a Cummins 750/1,000 hp engine and is fitted with a modified John Cockerill 3105 turret. The platform weighs 25 tonnes. The modified turret fitted to the Zorawar light tank integrates a lightweight remotely operated weapons system (ROWS) fitted on a rotating pedestal mount.

The ROWS is equipped with a 12.7 mm machine gun, and the ammunition feed is from a magazine located on the right-hand side of the weapon station. The turret also houses an ATGM launcher on its right-hand side. It is mounted with four banks of four smoke dischargers, with two in the front and two at the rear facing sideways.

In comparison, a standard Cockerill 3105 turret comes fitted with only two banks of four smoke dischargers in the front.