The Army's new long-range ultra- light (UlH) howitzer M-777 was damaged during a field trial in Pokhran firing range and a probe has been ordered into the incident, Army sources said here.
The sources said the barrel of the US-manufactured gun exploded when it was firing Indian ammunition on September 2.
India had received two M-777 ultra-light howitzers in May, each worth around Rs 35 crore, after a gap of 30 years since the Bofors scandal broke out, and the accident took place in one of them.
The field trials of the 155 mm, 39-calibre guns manufactured by BAE systems were being carried out at Pokhran in Rajasthan with an aim to collate and determine various critical data like trajectory, speed and frequency.
"During the firing, the projectile which was fifth of the series, exited the barrel in multiple pieces, causing the accident," an army source said.
There was no injury to anyone.
"The barrel of the gun has been damaged, extent of which is being assessed by Joint Investigation Team," the source said.