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Recently I came across references to a weapon called the Bangalore Torpedo, which was used in the world wars. These weapons were made in India by the British Indian Army. I also happened to see references to these weapons in the movie Saving Private Ryan.

My question is:

Were there any more weapons used in the world wars, that were made in India, and were British colonies like India used for the manufacture of weapons for British Army ?

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    Bangalore Torpedo was designed in Bangalore, according to wiki, but it doesn't talk about manufacturing.
    – apoorv020
    Jun 23, 2012 at 8:29
  • so are you suggesting that they were not manufactured in India?
    – kartshan
    Jun 23, 2012 at 8:38
  • well looks like some things are still made in britain:mondial-defence.com/2011/Products/Bangalore_4_Tube.html Jun 23, 2012 at 10:35
  • @kartshan Due to logistics in most industries (including military production), manufacturing and research/development might not be co-located. It's more probable that less specialized equipment was manufactured in India (like guns etc.) for the military's consumption.
    – apoorv020
    Jun 23, 2012 at 13:36
  • I found this but it doesn't go into the depth of detail you want: ww2total.com/WW2/History/Production/Anglo-Americans/…
    – jfrankcarr
    Jun 23, 2012 at 13:49

1 Answer 1

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The British had gun manufacturing set up in India, see Ordnance Factories Board on wikipedia.

In 1940, to combat the growing threat of Japan, a military aircraft manufacturing facility was set up in Bangalore. See Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.

Can't find any mention of naval or artillery production, but it's possible they were setup by the British.

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  • I was told that HAL led to present-day hi-tech industries in Bangalore. If its true, British plan for weapons manufacturing led to today's high-tech scene in India! Jan 13, 2015 at 13:35

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