From Hailey to Corbett-----75 years of Conservation

[prashantsingh]

A short note I wrote on the 75th Anniversary of Corbett National Park which falls this year.
2011 is also the "International Year of Forests"

From Hailey to Corbett----Celebrating 75 years of Conservation

Christmas 1929. Edward James Corbett organised a hunt for Sir Malcolm Hailey, the Governor of United Provinces. A tiger and a few leopards fell to the hunters guns. The "success" of this hunt in the jungles of Kaladhungi would interestingly go on to be one of our nation's greatest success story in wildlife conservation.
It was this hunt which brought Jim Corbett close to one of the most powerful men in his times. Malcolm Hailey. They soon became close friends , sharing common interests in Wildlife and Shikar. They often fished together in Nainital lake and other lakes closeby. But their favourite fishing spot was the Ramganga. Here they fished for Trout and Mahseer.This location had the most picturesque setting. The forests were unspoilt with abundant wildlife. The river was "well stocked" with fish. There were "Magars", Otters,rich bird life and spotting a leopard or a tiger in the area was common.
It was a result of these fishing trips that Corbett influenced Hailey to set up a protected area which would preserve it's rich flora and fauna.
In 1933 a Wildlife Convention held in London outlined the need for conservation and defined hunting and trading laws for wild animals.
Subsequently over 300 square kilometers of forest land in the Ramganga river valley was marked and all hunting in this area was banned for the next five years.
Soon the United Provinces National Park Bill was approved. Exactly 75 years ago , a reserve was established on a permanent basis. This reserve was named after Hailey and was the first of it's kind in India.
Jim Corbett and a senior Forest Officer E.A. Smythies worked closely for the setting up of the reserve.
When Sir Malcolm Hailey left his post , there was an unsuccessful move by some people with vested interests to reduce the size of the reserve. It took more than four decades for the reduction in the size when a Dam was finally built on the Ramganga at the Southern end. This took away more than 40 square kilometer area of land and had an adverse effect on a number of species.
After Jim Corbett's death the reserve was renamed "Corbett National Park". The Park could not have got a better name. Corbett was one of the first true conservationists. Even though his skin colour was white , his heart was truly Indian. He loved India and her people. The locals loved him as much. On my last trip to Corbett's home which is today a museum. I was surprised to see the number of shops named after this great man. From Tea stalls, Barber shops,Tailors and Cobblers .......the name "Corbett" is all over. The man may have long died , but his memory still lives on. In the hearts of the common man. Some are probably the descendants of the same village folks for whom Jim was the only ray of hope. The savior who would rid them of the "maneaters of Kumaon".

Today the name CORBETT is synonymous with

Corbett: The hunter turned conservationist.

and

Corbett: The land of the Tiger. A place where this animal still roars in all his majesty. A place where he still walks free and is wild. A place where there is still hope. Hope for all those wildlife lovers and conservationists who would love to see this most beautiful of God's creations ---- The Royal Bengal Tiger, live on; for many many years to come.

[Bespoke]

Prashant,

Good job .I was reading similar write up the other day in Jim’s biography Martin Booth’s “Carpet Sahib”. I have always admired Jim Corbett for his keen sense of nature and his kind heartedness but it should also be mentioned that other people also worked towards the setting up of sanctuary people like E.R Stevens, J,E Carrington Turner etc they are not as famous as Jim but at same time their contribution cannot be ignored.

Just my two cents .

[prashantsingh]

Prashant,
I was reading similar write up the other day in Jim’s biography Martin Booth’s “Carpet Sahib"

Bang on. I read about the history (the first half of the note) from the same book.
Was reading somewhere about Corbett's "Maneaters of Kumaon".The book is a classic.Has been translated into more than 17 languages. Read by millions, most of whom have never pulled a trigger or visited the Indian Jungle. The book that made Corbett famous.

[Bespoke]

He is a celebrity no doubt for shooting and wildlife faternity ,I have great admiration for him not as hunter or conservationist but Jim as a human btw do you know of anyone who has laid hands upon Corbett's first private publication "Jungle Stories"?

Here are some Interesting pictures of Jim I posted on another forum.

[quote]

A very rare photograph of Jim Corbett, Capt Feddy Young & Col Wood having lunch after a duck shoot in the Ganga Khadar of distt Bijnor, photo taken during the period when Sultana was being hunted down.. (family collection ....jalilpur bijnor)



The gentlemen shielding his face with a shola hat is Ibbotson, Corbetts friend .The photo was taken after a partridge shoot in the khadir of distt bijnor ..the gentlemen laying down is from the famous Herssy family(courtesy .. jalilpur family ... bijnor)




Preparing Machaan for shooting 'Chuka maneater'




Skinning the Chuka man eater photo by Jean Ibbotson



With the relatives of last victim of 'Chuka Maneater'; Skull of the skinned maneater



Gurney House long way back. (Courtesy D.C.Kala)

[Vikram]

Good post,Prashant. I read all of Jim Corbett's and I love his writing style too.It's very lucid, pithy and never fails to convey the flavour of the emotions.


Best-
Vikram

[Baljit]

Very nice post Prashant also very nice picture Bespoke keep the history alive

Baljit

[Vikram]

Nice pics,Bespoke.

[captrakshitsharma]

Nice article doc saab and lovely pics bespoke. I have read all the corbet books and his style of storytelling is awesome.Simple writing and very gripping never looses his reader.You pick up the book and its very hard to put it down.My misfortune he didn't write enough to quench my thirst for for his writing..

[shooter]

dear bespoke,

did you mean jungle lore?

[Priyan]

There was a lesson in our English book back in high school titled "The End of The Mohan Maneater" from Jim Corbett's book "Man Eaters Of Kumaon" published by Oxford University Press. in 1944.

You can find the complete book in PDF version at http://www.archive.org/download/maneate ... 903mbp.pdf

EDIT: I used hate the lesson in that time as we regarded it nothing more than a bunch of English word aligned in rows but I feel like reading the whole book again now

[winnie_the_pooh]

Bespoke,

Interesting photos.I believe that when Capt Young finally found Sultana he was sleeping on a cot.Capt. Young then sat on him,using his considerable bulk to hold Sultana down till the rest of Young's party joined him.

[essdee1972]

Thanks, guys!! That write up and the photos are priceless!

@ Winnie, exactly! Jim Corbett describes it in his book (My India, I believe). One cannot escape his admiration for Sultana, even when he was hunting the bandit, as well as the not-so-veiled criticism of the "criminal castes" system.

@ Bespoke, if you mean Jungle Lore, I have a copy of it. I think it is Oxford University Press, bought from some airport.

[Bespoke]

Pleasure is all mine folks,I am glad you enjoyed the pictures.

Shooter ;Essdee1972,

No I do not mean Jungle Lore which came out in 1953,There was a book called "Jungle stories" which Jim privately got published in Nainital almost 100 copies it contained 104 pages book is considered similar to "Man eaters of Kumaon".Jim was able to distribute 75 copies and he believed most of them were read to death. The type was dismantled as the book was made so it was never reprinted. They are highly sought after by collectors.

Winnie,

You are spot on with your description, Sultana is almost a Legend in western U.P and a lot of stories fly around connected to him.
If you are interested do watch a movie called "The Long Duel" where Yul Brynner plays Sultana.

[anildev03]

wonderful photos

[akayar]

Nice write up, and nice old pictures, these reminded me of good old times. I must admit I had the pleasure of Big Game hunting for 2 decades in the Tiger Country / Mowguly country of central india from 1948 to I think perhaps 1967-68 when hunting was banned. Most of this forest area now has the Kanha, Bandhavgarh, Pench, Satpura National Parks.This was possible as my dad was an Imperial Forest Service Officer, and finally retired in 1954 as Chief Conservator of Forests from Old M.P. (included present Vidharba region) with head quarters(Capital) at Nagpur.

Present M.P. was formed in 1956 with Capital at Bhopal. All the shikar was done as per law prevailing, in the shooting blocks, by paying the requesit fees, this inluded fines when i shot a chital doe by mistake.
No sitting on waterholes, no shooting even on animal paths leading to waterholes, no shooting in night with spot lights, no shooting from vehicles. we had to stalk on foot, sarting mostly at 5 am with a gun bearer cum local baiga tracker , except for carnivores where we had to sit over a kill on a machan, or have haka during the afternoons.

This Province (State) i.e. Central Provinces & Berar was considerd as very backward and was teeming with big game. One could not sleep in the night whilst camping in Swiss Cottages (Double Fly, Drawing Dining, 2 Bed rooms, attached bathroom Tents) and where available Forest Inspection Huts / Rest Houses. This was during summers which is the season of rut for Cheetal / sambhar.

I has access to some really good old Books on Shikar, and hunting written by british forest officers military officers, on skinning and preservation of trophies published by Van Ingen & Van Ingen of Mysore, world famous Taxidermists, notes on Rifles etc., which my father possessed. Of course it includes Jim Corbett, but others were older. Some published in 1906, now may be out of print. Some old Black & White shikar photographs are still preserved.

I still have a few left, others having been picked up a foreign enthusiast. sorry for a long write up.

akayar