Thaindian News

By Ritu Sharma
New Delhi, Nov 3 (IANS) Up with the sun to sit cross-legged, finishing the day with curry and naan, the 250-odd US soldiers in India for a fortnight-long joint exercise got more than what they expected — but they weren’t complaining.

Apart from the mechanised exercise, the men from 2nd Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division of the US Army, took off their running shoes and traded their standard physical training for yoga.

They rose with the sun, sat on a mat in the grass, cross-legged, eyes closed, fist closed and controlling their breathing. A qualified instructor was deputed from the Indian side to teach them yoga.

“It was a different experience for them. Besides swapping soldiers, sharing equipment and trading war stories we also gave a taste of Indian culture. The US troops were given yoga classes twice or thrice a week,” said a senior Indian Army official.

And at mealtimes, the hamburgers and fries were swapped for curry and naan.

US Army first Lt. Joseph Lewandowski, the squadron’s information operations officer, said: “Some troops were hesitant at first to try the food. Some even opted for field rations rather than give the spicy food a try. Two chow halls were set up, one offering American food and the other offering Indian cuisine. Eventually, most US soldiers tried the Indian specialities, and liked them.”

The US troops also celebrated Diwali with their Indian counterparts.

“The troops were treated to special dinners and dancing. They participated in the local Diwali celebration, the Hindu festival of lights. By the end of the training, troops were trading e-mails, and becoming friends on Facebook,” the US Army’s official website said after the conclusion of the exercise.

The first joint exercise of Indian and US mechanised forces was conducted recently at the Indian Army’s training range at Babina, near Jhansi, in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh.

The US Army website said: “The (US) soldiers were deployed here to train with the Indian army’s 7th Mechanised Infantry Battalion. The two armies soldiered side by side, firing weapons and trading equipment. But perhaps the most valuable lessons learned were not those on the battlefield.”

The Indian Army familiarised itself with the US Army’s Stryker combat vehicles which boast of an integrated computer network system. The US Army’s deployment of 17 Stryker armoured vehicles was the largest number deployed outside Iraq and Afghanistan by the US.

(Ritu Sharma can be contacted at ritu.s@ians.in)