India’s indigenous Zorawar light tank programme is emerging as one of the most visible examples of growing defence-industrial cooperation between India and Belgium, with Belgian defence major John Cockerill Defense strengthening its role in supplying the tank’s 105-mm turret while simultaneously building manufacturing capacity in India.
The programme received unusually high-level recognition during Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever’s visit to New Delhi on September 3, 2026. Prime Minister Narendra Modi specifically referred to the Zorawar while describing the expansion of India-Belgium cooperation into strategic sectors, saying the two countries were working together on advanced defence equipment including the light tank. He also said agreements between the two governments and their defence industries would create new opportunities for co-development and co-production.
During the visit, Larsen & Toubro and John Cockerill Defense were reported to have concluded an agreement connected with the supply of turrets for the Zorawar programme. L&T is the principal industry partner working with the Defence Research and Development Organisation on the Indian Light Tank.
The development fits into a much larger industrial relationship that predates the latest agreement. John Cockerill has already designed and supplied the Cockerill 3105 turret fitted to the Zorawar prototype. The Belgian company confirmed in its own corporate reporting that its first 105-mm turret was delivered in India, integrated on Zorawar and subsequently tested during the tank’s development programme, including trials in the Himalayas.
At the heart of the system is the Cockerill 3105, a lightweight turret built around John Cockerill’s high-pressure 105-mm gun. The company says the turret combines substantial direct-fire capability with a modern fire-control system and battlefield connectivity while remaining light enough for medium-weight armoured platforms. Its gun elevation can reach up to 42 degrees, an advantage in mountainous and complex terrain where conventional tank engagement angles can become restrictive.
That combination is particularly suited to Zorawar. DRDO has designed the Indian Light Tank as a 25-tonne-class armoured fighting vehicle specifically intended for high-altitude operations. Unlike much heavier main battle tanks, Zorawar has been developed around mobility, rapid deployment and firepower in difficult terrain.
The Ministry of Defence confirmed that the tank was designed by DRDO’s Combat Vehicles Research & Development Establishment in collaboration with L&T. During trials in December 2024, Zorawar successfully fired at different ranges at an altitude exceeding 4,200 metres, while the Indian Air Force also demonstrated its air-transportability.
The Belgian turret does not mean that India intends to remain permanently dependent on imported turret assemblies. In fact, localisation has already moved into a more advanced phase.
In March 2025, John Cockerill Defense formally created a joint venture with Pune-based Electro Pneumatics & Hydraulics Pvt Ltd specifically for the Indian Army’s Indian Light Tank programme. According to John Cockerill’s official announcement, the venture is intended to manufacture, assemble and commission tank turrets in India, combining the Belgian company’s weapons-system technology with Indian industrial capabilities.
This is a strategically important distinction. L&T remains DRDO’s principal industry partner for building and integrating the Zorawar vehicle, while John Cockerill provides the specialist turret and weapon-system technology. The localisation venture with Electro Pneumatics creates an Indian industrial base capable of supporting manufacture and assembly of those turret systems domestically.
The arrangement therefore goes beyond purchasing a foreign-made 105-mm gun turret and installing it on an Indian hull. If the localisation programme progresses as planned, a growing share of the turret’s production, integration, commissioning and long-term support could take place inside India.
John Cockerill itself has described the arrangement as part of its support for India’s defence self-reliance programme. Its 2025 announcement said the partnership was aligned with Make in India and intended to strengthen domestic defence-production capabilities.
The timing of the latest development is also significant because India and Belgium are deliberately broadening their defence relationship. During the September 3 India-Belgium Defence CEOs Roundtable in New Delhi, Belgian Defence and Foreign Trade Minister Theo Francken and India’s Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth called for deeper industrial cooperation built around co-development and co-production rather than traditional buyer-seller relationships.
For Zorawar, this model is already visible. DRDO provides the core Indian design and development leadership, L&T builds and integrates the vehicle, numerous Indian companies supply subsystems, and John Cockerill contributes specialised turret and gun technology that India is now attempting to manufacture increasingly within the country.
The programme also reflects India’s effort to develop armoured vehicles specifically tailored for its operational geography rather than simply adapting conventional heavy tanks. Zorawar’s relatively low weight allows substantially greater mobility in mountainous terrain and improves its ability to be transported rapidly to areas where roads and bridges may impose weight restrictions.
DRDO’s first developmental firing trials in September 2024 demonstrated the vehicle in desert conditions, while subsequent high-altitude firing validated the concept at more than 4,200 metres. The Ministry of Defence said the development from design to high-altitude demonstration was achieved within approximately three years.
The 105-mm Cockerill turret therefore represents one of the most important foreign-origin components in an otherwise heavily Indian-led programme. Localising that subsystem would further increase the domestic content of Zorawar and, equally importantly, establish Indian capability in the manufacture and support of sophisticated large-calibre turret systems.
The wider significance extends beyond a single tank. Once manufacturing, assembly, testing and integration capabilities for modern turret systems exist in India, they could potentially support future armoured-vehicle programmes and other configurations requiring lightweight high-calibre firepower.
For Belgium, the Zorawar programme gives one of its leading defence companies a place inside one of India’s most important new land-warfare projects. For India, the objective is broader: absorb specialised technology, manufacture more of the system domestically and develop an industrial ecosystem capable of supporting the platform throughout its service life.
That makes the evolving John Cockerill partnership more than a turret purchase. It is becoming a test case for the type of defence relationship India increasingly wants with foreign technology partners — advanced systems developed with overseas expertise, but progressively manufactured, integrated and sustained in India.
References
Prime Minister’s Office / PIB — September 3, 2026
Prime Minister Narendra Modi specifically confirmed India-Belgium cooperation on advanced defence equipment including the Zorawar tank.
PMO/PIB official statement
Ministry of Defence / PIB — September 3, 2026
India and Belgium call for deeper defence-industrial cooperation through co-development and co-production.
Official Ministry of Defence release
John Cockerill Defense — March 4, 2025
Official announcement of the joint venture with Electro Pneumatics & Hydraulics for manufacturing, assembling and commissioning turrets in India for the Indian Light Tank programme.
John Cockerill official release
Ministry of Defence / PIB — December 12, 2024
Official account of Zorawar’s high-altitude firing trials above 4,200 metres and confirmation that L&T is the programme’s manufacturing industry partner.
Official Zorawar high-altitude trials release
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