Shaktiman trucks were heavy-duty military trucks used by the Indian Army. Indian MIlitary had over 75,000 of these trucks active in service at one point in time. Only a few of these trucks have survived nowadays with the truck being discontinued.

These trucks were trusted workhorses for the Indian Army for several decades. They had powerful engines, high ground clearance, and excellent off-road capabilities, making them highly suitable for defence operations. These trucks were used in various military tasks like transporting troops and towing artillery.

Shaktiman Truck - History, Variants and Successors

In the article below, we share an in-depth history, benefits, variants and successors of the Shaktiman Truck to help you learn more about it.

Shaktiman Truck History

Shaktiman Truck was a military truck made by the Indian government from 1959 to 1996. The manufacturer of these trucks was Vehicle Factory Jabalpur (VFJ), which is controlled by the Ministry of Defense (MoD) of the Indian government. Over 75,000 of these trucks were manufactured by Vehicle Factory Jabalpur but just a few of them remain on active duty today.

Shaktiman Truck Uses and Benefits

Shaktiman Trucks had high engine power at that time and were used in gun carrying and artillery carrying tasks. These trucks had many variants made for certain military works. Most of these trucks were used to transport troops or supplies while some were used to transport water.

Also, some of these trucks were specially used to carry artillery. All the use cases of these trucks are detailed below:

1. Transportation: During the Indo-Pakistan war, the Shaktiman truck was used to transport Indian troops and supplies to and from the battlefield. It was also used to transport guns and ammunition. Various food supplies were also transported through these trucks.

2. Road Construction Work: These trucks were also used in the construction of the roads. During road construction these trucks were used to transport different materials, clear airfields and land.

3. Towing Artillery: These trucks were used to tow artillery and other weapons like tanks. They were also used to pull different types of machinery related to the military.

4. Water and Fuel Transportation: Two variants of these trucks were specially made to transport water and fuel. Both of these trucks had a capacity of 4,000 litres for carrying either water or fuel.

These were the main use cases of Shaktiman trucks in the Indian military. Since then manufacturing of these trucks has been discontinued and only a few of them survived till today.

Shaktiman Truck Specifications

As said before, these trucks were the most powerful trucks back in the time. Though they have been replaced with modern trucks, they had impressive performance and specifications. The complete details are listed below.

| Specifications | Details ||:------------------:|:------------------------------------------:|| Fuel Type | Diesel || Engine | 6-cylinder in-line diesel injection engine || Power | 110 HP @ 2500 RPM || Torque | 350 Nm @ 1600 RPM || Operating Weight | 7 tonnes || Payload Capacity | 3 tonnes || Transmission | Manual || Transfer Case | Two-speed || Gear Box | 5 forward and 1 reverse gear || Fuel Tank Capacity | 400 litres || Top Speed | 80 km/hr |

These trucks provided powerful engine performance with a 6-cylinder diesel engine. The maximum engine power output of these trucks was 130 HP. These trucks had huge payload capacities and operating weights. This truck had a 5-gear manual transmission.

Variants of Shaktiman Truck

There were many variants of Shaktiman manufactured to perform certain tasks on the battlefield. These variants with their details are explained below.

Shaktiman 4x4 and 4x2 Trucks

Shaktiman 4x4 truck was one of the most common variants used. Shaktiman 4x4 was used to transport troops from and into the battlefield. Other things like guns and food supplies were also transported through these trucks. Shaktiman 4x4 was an all-wheel drive truck which made it easier to move through all types of terrains. Shaktiman 4x4 trucks had either a hard top or a soft top, the main difference between them was the roof of the truck. In a Shaktiman 4x4 hard top the roof was closed and made of metal but in a Shaktiman 4x4 soft top the roof was open.

Main Specifications of the Shaktiman 4x4 Truck

• HP: 130 HP
• Torque: 350 Nm
• Payload Capacity: 3 tonnes
• Towing Capacity: 6 tonnes
• Fuel Tank Capacity: 100 litres

Shaktiman 4x2 truck was similar to the Shaktiman 4x4 truck except for one difference. Shaktiman 4x2 truck was powered by rear axles and wasn’t an all-wheel drive truck. The Shaktiman 4x2 truck played a significant role in the Indian Army during the Indo-Pakistan war. This truck also had two types hard top and soft top.

Main Specifications of the Shaktiman 4x2 Truck

• HP: 130 HP
• Torque: 350 Nm
• Payload Capacity: 5 tonnes
• Towing Capacity: 7 tonnes
• Fuel Tank Capacity: 100 litres

Shaktiman 4000 litres Water and Fuel Tankers

Shaktiman 4000 litre water tankers were used to transport water to the battlefields of the Indo-Pakistan war (1965 and 1971) and these trucks were also used in cleaning jobs after the Bhopal Gas Tragedy in 1984. These trucks had a tank at the back with a water capacity of 4000 litres.

Shaktiman 4000 litres fuel tankers were used to transport fuel to remote locations in Kashmir, Bengal and the Himalayas deserts during the war. The fuel was then used to refuel the military vehicles and aircraft.

Shaktiman Artillery Trucks

Shaktiman artillery trucks were used to tow heavy weapons and artillery. These trucks had towing capacities of 10 tonnes. These were also used to recover vehicles from muddy terrains.

Successor of Shaktiman Truck

Shaktiman trucks have been discontinued since 1996 and nowadays are replaced by newer trucks. VFJ is manufacturing newer models of trucks these days. The new successor of this truck is the Stallion manufactured by VFJ. There are over 60,000 Stallion trucks present in active service for the Indian Army.

Another successor of this truck is the LPTA truck. The LPTA has been in service for the Indian Army since 2015. The Shaktiman 4000 litre truck variant has been replaced with the 5000 litres Stallion water bowser and the 2000 litres LPTA water bowser.

The full list of new successors of Shaktiman trucks is below:

• VSJ’s Stallion truck
• Tata LPTA 715 truck
• Ashok Leyland Super Stallion 6x6
• Stallion 5000 litres water bowser
• LPTA 2000 litres water bowser
• LPTA field ambulance truck
• 4x4 bulletproof truck
• 4x4 riot control vehicle

Conclusion

That was all about the history, uses, variants and successors of the Shaktiman truck. These trucks were a solid resource of power and performance for the Indian Army. Even though most of these trucks did not survive, the Indian Army has found the perfect replacement for these powerful vehicles in the form of Ashok Leyland Stallion and Tata LPTA 715 trucks.