Korean War Legacy Project

Angad Singh

Bio

Lieutenant Colonel Angad Singh was born on April 10, 1934, in Ambala, Punjab, India. He is one of eight children. His father was a history teacher and his mother, a homemaker. He recalls learning Hindu, Islamic, and Sikh teachings in school. After graduating high school with high marks, he wished to join the army. He enlisted in the military in October of 1950 and attended a one-year basic training in Bangalore, India. He recalls not knowing anything about Korea until after enlisting in the military. He remembers sailing from Madras, India, to Korea in 1953 where his unit served in the Panmunjom region of the DMZ until leaving Korea in 1954. Mandeep Singh, Angad Singh’s grandson born in 1992, joins the interview near the end. He shares his reflections on his grandfather’s service in Korea.

Video Clips

Korea, 1953

Angad Singh reflects on his impressions of Korea immediately following the war. He remembers arriving in Incheon in 1953 when Syngman Rhee was Korea's President. He noticed devastation everywhere. He arrived at the DMZ and recalls seeing no buildings left. He remembers seeing huts made from mud and next to no industry in the area.

Tags: Incheon,Depression,Impressions of Korea,Living conditions,Message to Students,Modern Korea,Physical destruction,Poverty,Prior knowledge of Korea,South Koreans

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Modern Korea

Angad Singh reflects on his recent trip back to Korea along with the Korean Veterans Association. He shares how he was well-received by the Korean people and recalls his amazement of the Incheon airport. He remembers seeing a sixteen-lane highway, which was impressive to him considering there were few functioning roads there after the war. He reflects on the improvement and progress made in Korea.

Tags: Incheon,Impressions of Korea,Living conditions,Message to Students,Modern Korea,Pride,South Koreans

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Experience in Korea

Angad Singh speaks about his living arrangements in Panmunjom, along the DMZ. He describes their living quarters, U.S. tents, being well-built and remembers having kerosine heaters in the tents because the temperatures in Korea were very cold. He recalls some of his duties while in Korea and adds that he left Korea and arrived home in India in August of 1954.

Tags: Panmunjeom,Civilians,Cold winters,Front lines,Impressions of Korea,Living conditions,Message to Students,North Koreans,South Koreans

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Mandeep Singh, Grandson of Angad Singh

Mandeep Singh, the grandson of Lieutenant Colonel Angad Singh, joins the interview. He was born on February 11, 1992. He shares his reflections on his grandfather's service in Korea and explains that he was able to join his grandfather on a return to Korea trip in 2009. He recalls attending the United Nations Peace Camp run by the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs of the Republic of Korea.

Tags: Impressions of Korea,Message to Students,Modern Korea,Pride,South Koreans

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