Saving Private Ryan with the Bangalore Torpedo

I happened to watch "Saving Private Ryan" for the second time.Thanks to the subtitles,I realised Tom Hanks actually asks for a Bangalore Torpedo in the initial part of the movie (beach scene).After a little bit of research,here's a load of information I found that already exists!

Source: Wikipedia >>

"A Bangalore torpedo is an explosive charge placed on the end of a long, extendable, tube. It is used by combat engineers to clear obstacles that would otherwise require them to approach directly, possibly under fire. It is sometimes referred to (somewhat inaccurately) as a Bangalore mine or simply a Bangalore.

The Bangalore torpedo was adopted by the US Army during World War II as the "M1A1 Bangalore Torpedo". It was widely used by both the U.S. and Commonwealth forces, notably during D-Day. The use of a Bangalore Torpedo to clear a barbed wire barrier is depicted in the D-Day beach invasion scene in the movies Saving Private Ryan, The Longest Day, and The Big Red One.(snapshots of Saving Private Ryan shown in this post)"

Source: "Saving Private Ryan Online Encyclopedia" >>

The original Bangalore torpedo was designed in 1912 by Captain McClintock, an engineer who worked for Bengal, Bombay and Madras Sappers and Miners. Developed in Bangalore, India, the original design was not intended for warfare, but to clear pre-existing barbed-wire obstacles leftover from the Boer War and Russo-Japanese War.

The World War II era M1A1 Bangalore Torpedo was a pipe-shaped Class V anti-personnel mine-clearing charge capable of blasting a ten- to 20-foot wide path through a minefield or section of barbed wire. Short connecting sleeves were used to attach the threaded ends of two or more tubes in order to create a longer explosive device. A rounded nose sleeve was placed on the leading end of a tube in order to push the tube through obstacles. The torpedo was set off by placing a blasting cap in the recessed end cap well and igniting it with a time-delayed (electric or non-electric) fuse.

The Bangalore torpedo is still employed today by the United States Army. A modern M1A2 Bangalore torpedo kit contains 10 five-foot torpedo sections, 10 five-inch connecting sleeves, and 1 nose sleeve.
The apparent replacement for the Bangalore torpedo system is the Antipersonnel Obstacle Breaching System (APOBS), which lays out an explosive line charge using a small rocket. The APOBS system is lighter and quicker to deploy, and clears a larger area than the Bangalore torpedo system.

By two coffee

"By-two coffee" is a true-blue Bangalorean expression.It simply means sharing a single cup of filter coffee as you cannot afford two.You see,people in Bangalore love to take their cup of coffee as often as they can during the day.This means they can't always shell out the money but are willing to share the expenses with an equally coffee loving person or partner.

"By-two coffee" is usually taken when you meet up an old acquaintaince on the street or a daily coffee break with colleagues to the nearest tea/coffee stall.You may not get to see this culture in the posh coffee shops of these days..but do venture out to a government office or a local eatery/darshini,you will definitely not miss this concept in actual practise.

Going a bit further on this subject,"by-two coffee" is always served in traditonal steel glasses with a steel katori(small bowl).Go ahead and order for a single cup of coffee which gets served in the small katori with the steel glass upside down(the coffee is inside the upturned glass).Its your wish to skillfully remove the glass and divide the coffee for your partner or ask for another empty glass to make the share!
The picture above is not the perfect -"by-two coffee" but it does show you the steel katori with a glass(just imagine a steel glass instead).

This "by-two"concept is so popular that you will see college students asking a dish of soup split into two(either coz they dont want to spend on two bowls or cannot complete one whole dish by themselves.We also got a radio show name "by two coffee" on radio city.

Personally,any cup of coffee is fine by me..as long as its hot and served atleast three times every day!

Churchill in Bangalore

As I embark upon reading Sir Winston Churchill's biography(thanks to a fabulous discount at the Strand Book Festival this year),I recollect being told that Britain's most admired leader had visited Bangalore in the 1800's.Here is the article which was published in The Hindu quite a few years back which explains the visit in detail.In case you are going to skip reading the whole article,let me atleast tell you here's what he thought of Bangalore - A"Prison" or "3rd rate watering role"!!

P.S: The picture has nothing to do with Churchill in Blore!

Article Courtesy: The Hindu

"IN October 1896, Winston Churchill reached Bangalore, then not a bustling megapolis but a small, sleepy, cantonment town. He liked the climate: "the sun even at midday is temperate and the mornings and evenings are fresh and cool. He liked the house allotted to him: "a magnificent pink and white stucco palace in the middle of a large and beautiful garden." And he was well served by his staff, who included a gardener, a water-carrier, a dhobi, and a watchman.

Life in Bangalore was pleasant, but also very boring. A young army officer yearned for "action"; but the only wars in India were then being fought at the other end of the subcontinent, on the Afghan border. So Churchill began, a butterfly collection; this got to as many as 65 varieties, before it was attacked by rats. Simultaneously, he got down to the business of educating himself. After school he had been sent to the military academy in Sandhurst, and was consequently denied the benefit of an Oxbridge education. This left him with a serious chip on his shoulder, for whenever he met University men they would "pose you entrapping questions or give baffling answers."

To get even, the young Winston "resolved to read history, philosophy, economics and things like that; and I wrote to my mother asking for such books as I had heard of on these topics." The books arrived, and the autodidact got down to work. He read four or five hours each day: historians like Gibbon and Macaulay, philosophers like Plato and Socrates, economists like Malthus, biologists like Darwin. These varied readings led him to question the basis of his religion. No longer could he accept the Bible as an accurate rendition of history; but he was not prepared either to abandon his faith and declare himself an atheist. There was no real need, as he saw it, to attempt to reconcile the Bible with modern scientific and historical knowledge. As he put it, "if you are the recipient of a message which cheers your heart and fortifies your soul, which promises you reunion with those you have loved in a world of larger opportunity and wider sympathies, why should you worry about the shape of colour of the travel-stained envelope; whether it is duly stamped, whether the date on the postmark is right or wrong?... What is important is the message and the benefits to you of receiving it." This process of self-learning is described in his memoir My Early Life, in a chapter suitably entitled "Education in Bangalore".

After eight months in Bangalore, the young Subaltern wrote to his mother summing up his life there. "Poked away in a garrison town which resembles a 3rd rate watering place, out of season and without the sea, with lots of routine work and... without society or good sport — half my friends on leave and the other half ill — my life here would be intolerable were it not for the consolations of literature ... ."

Apart from butterflies and books, there was also sport. In My Early Life there is a vivid description of a polo tournament in Hyderabad won by Churchill's regiment. Discreetly omitted from the memoir is what happened on that visit, outside the playing field. For it was in Hyderabad that Churchill fell in love for the first time. The lady's name was Pamela Flowden, and her father was a high official of the Indian Civil Service. "She was," Winston wrote to his mother, "The most beautiful girl I have ever seen — Bar none," and also "very clever". He hoped to take a tour of the city with her on elephant back, for "you dare not walk or the natives spit at Europeans — which provokes retaliation leading to riots."

The ride was taken, but it got nowhere. For Pamela's father would not allow his daughter to enter into marriage with an impecunious army officer. So Churchill returned disconsolately to Bangalore. He now sought, as his biographer writes, "an opportunity to expose himself to the fire of any enemy of England who happened to be available at the moment." He wrote asking to join Kitchener's advancing army in Egypt, but they didn't want him there.
Ultimately, after his mother had pulled a few strings in London, he was invited by General Sir Bindon Blood to join the Malakand Field Force, which was battling truculent tribes on the North-west Frontier.
Churchill's son later wrote that his letters from Bangalore "show that he thought he was in a prison". So when the order for parole came he raced to redeem it. As he himself recalled, when Sir Bindon's telegram arrived "I sped to the Bangalore railway station and bought a ticket for Nowshera. The Indian clerk, having collected from me a small sack of rupees, pushed an ordinary ticket through a pigeon-hole. I had the curiosity to ask how far it was. The polite Indian consulted a railway time table an impressively answered, 2,028 miles. Quite a big place, India! This meant a five days' journey in the worst of heat. I was alone, but with plenty of books, the time passed not unpleasantly... . I spent five days in a dark padded moving cell, reading mostly by lamplight or by some jealously admitted ray of glare."

So the Indian countryside made as little impression on Churchill as had the sights in and around Bangalore. Books, English books, were preferable to either. "Prison" or "3rd rate watering role"; that is how he seems to have regarded my home town. Bangalore left no traces on him; what traces did he leave on it?
In Bangalore, Churchill was bored, he was bookish, and he was butterfly-obsessed. And he was also (not that he reveals it in his memoirs) broke. Evidence of his financial penury is contained in the lounge of the Bangalore Club. There, under a display window, is a minute book open at a page where we can read, under the list of members who have outstanding dues, the name of "Lieutenant W.S. Churchill." The sum he owed (indeed still owes) the Bangalore Club was 13 rupees.

From his own testimony and that of his biographer, we know how Churchill lived in Bangalore. Many people in the city, most especially perhaps brokers in real estate, are keen to know where he lived. Not long ago a friend of mine moved to Bangalore. After a few months in rented premises he sought to buy a bungalow in Whitefield, since he had been informed that it had once been the home of Churchill. Luckily he consulted me before signing the papers. I told him that in fact every owner of an old bungalow in the city claimed that it was once Churchill's. I myself write this in a room the tiles of whose floor tell me that they were made in the year 1865 by the Standard Brick and Tiles Company, Yelahanka. The room forms part of a building which is no longer a "magnificent pink and stucco palace." And the once "beautiful garden" was long ago colonised by concrete. Still, I have only to point the visitor in the direction of those faded but still lovely red tiles, and say: "Lieuetenant Winston Spencer Churchill once lived here."

Bangalore T Shirts

Here are some T-shirts dedicated to "Bangalore" city.
I personally feel,t-shirts made by Tantra on Blore were the best.It had cartoons and one liners like "swalpa adjust madi",the "pub city" etc.I am however not able to my hands on a copy of this shirt I am talking about.

Displayed below is a another one made by Tantra.Its more of a rip off from the popular vodka bottle.

Adidas too have come up with a " I love Bangalore" black shirt which was displayed in their windows a few months back.Here is a similar one which you could order online through cafepress or amazon.com.

"Bangalore- my world"(below) is created by a city youth.More details in a article from "The Hindu" newspaper.

Top blog sites on Bangalore I have come across:

1) Metroblogging Bangalore : Bangalore's official space in the world's largest network of city focused blogs.This HAS to be the best blog on the city.Everything and anything happening in the city is posted here.Right from the FM stations to latest hotels,local festivals to local transport.Its updated daily and should not be missed!

2) The Bangalore Blog: This blog gives a critical view point on all issues related to the cities growth and infrastructure.Most of the posts are newspaper articles which are already published.It's a good read to keep track of the city's various issues considering the morning newspaper gets just a quick glance.

3) Bangalore Daily Photo : I find this interesting as many of the snaps posted are what I pass by quite often.Its a good blog showcasing Bangalore as one of its residents.The photography isnt spectacular but the range of subjects covered till now is amazing.Only a true blue Bangalorean will understand what I mean!

4) Restaurant reviews from the moon: I really refrain from reading restaurant reviews in the papers.This blog however got my attention as it came up with many restaurant's I never knew existed!Especially the Opus hotel on Palace Road.I cross this place once a week and always thought of it as a dance school or something! (dont ask me how i came up with that).Also,the reviews are as good as asking a friend how their trip to a restaurant was.

The best of Bangalore on the NET!

I have always been proud of Bangalore city.One of the reasons is because its been my home for more than twenty years.I have admired and enjoyed its reputation for being a "calm and cool city" and at the same time famous for its institutions and hi-tech achievements.The city always enjoyed a high status reputation in terms of its culture,people,events,climate and intelligence. I hence thought about researching and providing a post which will let you browse through the city,virtually.And what better way than to give you a consolidated list of the various official websites which have a direct connection in the silicon valley of India!


Culturally speaking :

1)Bangalore's very own festival - the Bangalore Habba.The city's annual event which aims to create awareness about the dance,music,theatre,literature,fashion and crafts of the state.It hopes to promote the city as a culture capital and not just IT/BT capital.Some of the interesting activities during the event:street plays,display of crafts (esp on MG road),prose and poetry readings at coffee shops,vintage car rallys,food festivals and much more.
Visit this link during the first week of Decemeber to get the schedules.

2)If you are a theatre buff :Rangashankara is the place you dont want to miss.It's a newly built theatre which claims to provide a unique performing space at subsidized rates to both theatre groups and audiences.The whole idea is to promote theatre or as they put it,"a dream to rejuvinate and keep the theatre alive".Use the site to get their address and calendar of events.I personally dont think its a good site to navigate around plus the calendar is always outdated.You could probably admire the colours used!

3) If you are an art lover,you are in for a surprise.There is a dedicated site for Bangalore Art which should be a place to let you know about upcoming exhibitions,info on galleries ,reviews etc.Sadly you are going to be disappointed to know that this site hasnt been updated since 2005.Keep an eye out on it,you never know when the revival might take place.

4) The Alliance Française de Bangalore for the French Connection.It is not only the right place to study French but offers you diverse and exiting cultural events each month. Dance festivals,films,plays,art,literature and so on.It's all about learning the French culture!

5) The Goethe-Institut in Bangalore -Max Mueller Bhavan :Learn German and experience Germany’s culture with the official German cultural institute.

6) The British still haven't left India.Here's what is left of them : British Council India.


Be a tourist in your own city:

1) City swaps :They claim to be the country's first hop on and off sightseeing bus.Though its a good idea provided all major cities worldwide have such buses,the ticket prices seem a bit steep.Just wish the state tourism department had marketed their bus well enough to be a grand success by itslef and yes,,you could have then be assured of good prices.

2) Bangalore Walks: Its exactly what it states.A walk through Bangalore city.Only this time,the organisers are going to make it exciting for you.They will make you discover the the history and culture of the city which you mostly likely are not aware of.They offer walks for locals,visitors,school students,corporates,even team building walks!All this for a price ofcourse.

3) Cauvery crafts is the official handicrafts showroom by the Karnataka State Handicrafts Development Corporation Ltd.You can call is a souvenir shop.

4) My recommended store for shopping for souvenirs : The Bombay Store on M.G Road,Blore.

) I have been hearing about the Bangalore International Airport ever since I was in high school.Let's hope its worth the wait.And why not,its much further than Banglaore city,let alone where you stay!

Options for the hassled commuter.

1) Car pooling is here! :Yes,the concept is actually practised right here.And you thought you only Mr.Dagwood Bumstead took one,eh?

2) Your mode of transport during school and college days- Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation(BMTC).I am sure you hardly use the public transport these days(the only exception being,the big red volvo bus!

3) The only hope of a better public transport in the years to come,the Bangalore Metro.

Bookstores for bookworm

1) Strand book stall

2) Crossword

3) Sapna Book House

4) The British Library.

5) SIP books on M.G Road

Sports:

1) Bowling at Amoeba.

2) The Bangalore Race Course

3) Private Golf Course - Eagleton

Movies and Clubs

1) Blow away your money onthe new age multiplexes: PVR,Inox.

2) Local Film Club : Collective Chaos

3) The guide to Clubbing in Bangalore! :Its the official night life website of good old Bangalore.I hope you remember,there's a legal curfew at 1130 pm..

4) The Bangalore Club one of the oldest clubs in the country(a recorded history of over 120 years)

5) Indiranagar Club

Coffee shops:

1) Cafe Coffee day

2) Barista

Nature and Animals:

1) Compassion Unlimited Plus Action

2) Bangalore SPCA

3) Environment support group

Science:

Bangalore is also the home for a huge number of geeks.Below are some of the most prestigious institutions related to science.

1) Bangalore Association for Science Education(BASE)- try this for info about the planetarium and related links.

2) Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)

3) Indian Institute of Science (IISc)

4) University of Agricultural Sciences(UAS)

5) The National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS)

6) Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (CAIR)

7) Institute of Bioinformatics and Applied Biotechnology (IBAB)

Other Premier Instituions:

1) National Law School of India

2) The Indian Institute of Management Bangalore

4) International Institute of Information Technology, Bangalore (IIIT-b)

5) Indian Statistical Institute, Bangalore Centre

Citizen's corner

1) Jaanagraha :the NGO or movement which aims to mobilise community or citizen participation for a better city.

2) Bangalore Police :

3) E-police

4) Bangalore Mahanagara Palike -responsibile for the civic and infrastructural assets of the city

5) Bangalore Agenda Task Force - The government's initiative with a mission to make Blore a world class city

6) Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited - trust me,they are more important to your daily lives than you realise.

7) Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board

8) Koramangala

9) Bangalore Pot holes

10) Bangalore Expatriate Club

Reasons for the city's booming Economy

1) Reason one: its the IT capital of the country!
2) Next,its all set to be the Bio tech capital.

Much before the IT/BT boom,we had:
3) Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML)

4) Hindustan Aeronautics Limited(HAL) and National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL)

5)Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL)

Software Parks and the city's own multinational brands

1) International Tech Park,Whitefield,Bangalore.

2) Infosys : needs no intro

3) Wipro - do-

4) Biocon - do-

5) MTR

Schools

1) The Frank Anthony Public School (FAPS)

2) Bishop Cotton Schools, Bangalore

3) Gopalan International School

4) The Cathedral High School



Religion:

1) Infant Jesus Shrine,Viveknagar,Bangalore

2) ISKON



Colleges

1) M S Ramaiah Institute of Technology

2) B. M. S. College of Engineering

3) Mount Carmel College

4) Christ College

5) Jyoti Nivas College


Health Care:

1) Bangalore Medical College

2 ) St. John's Medical College

3) National Institute of Mental Health & Neuro Science

4) Wockhardt Hospital & Heart Institute on Cunningham Road.

5) Manipal Hospital on Airport road.

6) Mallya Hospital

7) Sagar Apollo Hospital