The Hindu : Karnataka News : A slice of history at Taramandalpet

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Nov 21, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka

A slice of history at Taramandalpet

The experimental rockets that were fired used to light up the night sky

— Photo: Bhagya Prakash K.

SURVIVING: Tipu Sultan’s armoury in Bangalore.

Tucked amid the clamour of the busy Kalasipalyam area is a slice of Bangalore’s history and a connection to its historical past. The 18th century armoury that housed the famed rockets of Tipu Sultan has been masked by the present day hustle and bustle of the area, and very few Bangaloreans are familiar with this historical site. Not many are also aware that the area was once known as Taramandalpet as the experimental rockets that were fired would light up the night s ky. On Tuesday, just as a few historians remembered the birthday of the Tiger of Mysore, it is also the armoury, which he constructed, that remained neglected. The Tiger of Mysore was born at Devanahalli, near Bangalore, on November 20, 1750. It was also in the then Taramandalpet that Tipu Sultan first test-fired his rockets against the warring English Army. The armoury along with Tipu Sultan’s Palace and the Bangalore Fort are the remaining few monuments of that era. “Attempts to restore the armoury and put it on the tourist map are under way. We have also sought the status of protected monument under the Archaeological Survey of India,” convener of Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) H.R. Prathibha told The Hindu. The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike ward office would be converted to a gallery, providing information about Tipu Sultan’s achievement, she added. The armoury in Kalasipalyam was among the four that were constructed by Tipu Sultan to store ammunition. While three have vanished due to the urban sprawl, the one near Kote Venkataramana Temple has survived the onslaught. Many experiments on rocket technology were conducted here, and the Kalasipalyam area witnessed pioneering effort on the rocket technology.

Sharath S. Srivatsa in Bangalore

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