American Army band plays 'Jana Gana Mana' during India-US joint military exercise

The rousing strains of 'Jana Gana Mana', the Indian National Anthem was played out by an American Army band during the joint Indo-US military exercise in Washington.

The American troops played 'Jana Gana Mana' on their trumpets on Wednesday, the concluding day of the 'Yudh Abhyas 2019' exercise.

Interestingly, Indian origin American soldier, Staff Sergeant Ranbir Kaur was also a part of the exercise at the Joint Base Lewis McChord that began on September 5.

"I am part of the 223rd MI Battalion out of California. I was born in India but was brought up in the US since 1993. I have been part of the US Army since 2003. Currently, I am at the closing ceremony for YA 19 (Yudh Abhyas 2019) and had a great experience working with my Indian counterparts. The best part of the exercise was that female Indian officers participated in it. That was great interaction between both sides. I learned a lot from them and look forward to working with them again," Kaur said.

She is also the first Sikh woman to join the US Army and started with the California National Guard at the age of 17.

Chinook and ultra-light howitzers have been acquired by India also and both would be used during Exercise HimVijay in Arunachal Pradesh near the China border in October.

This is the 15th edition of the joint exercise hosted alternately between the two countries.

Both armies jointly training, planning and executing a series of well-developed operations for neutralisation of various threats.

ln the end, a joint exercise will be undertaken by both countries in an operational setting under a UN mandate.