New Delhi: The indigenously designed and developed light battle tank will be tested and evaluated by the Army next year, a top officer has said, adding that plans are underway to fund a project to develop a futuristic light tank as well, with the industry taking the lead.

Developed in response to the Army's requirements for high-altitude battlefields like eastern Ladakh, the tank is a joint project between DRDO and L&T. It is currently undergoing developmental trials and will be handed over for user evaluation shortly.

Speaking at the Indian Armour Symposium, Lt Gen Vivek Kashyap, director general of Armoured Corps, said that a future light battle tank will be developed as well with the help of the industry. The officer said two industry partners will be identified after technical evaluation and will develop their own variants based on Army requirements.

The project will be partially funded by the Army and the system that emerges better in the competitive process will be selected for induction in larger numbers.

Indian tanks have more mobility and higher accuracy fire power than the Chinese Type 15 tanks that have been deployed on the Ladakh border.

The weight of the tank has been kept at 25 tonnes for higher mobility at extreme altitudes. The senior officer also said that plans to develop next-generation main battle tanks under Project Ranjit are underway.