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July 26, 1999

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Seeking the Shikari

A peep at the man behind Corbettania.

By B G Verghese

JIM CORBETT OF KUMAON
BY D C KALA
RAVI DAYAL
PAGES: 175, PRICE: Rs 162

Jim Corbett of Kumaon The book makes a delightful read for all those interested in nature and wildlife; perhaps even more for those who seek an introduction to a subject that combines national importance with personal satisfaction.

Even while a newspaper colleague, I remember D.C. Kala assiduously stalking Corbettania. This was soon to appear in the first edition of this volume in 1979, which with further research is available in this extensively revised edition. The book is more about Jim Corbett the man than as a shikari. Those interested in Corbett's exploits with the gun can do no better than read his own absorbing books of which Maneaters of Kumaon remains a classic.

James Edward Corbett was one of an extended family of 15, all "country-bottled" whites who settled in India. Corbett was no pucca sahib but a non-matriculate who could not obtain a commission in the army (whites only) and joined the wood-fired Bengal North-Western Railways as a fuel contractor at Mokameh. The naturalist ironically started life felling the forest.

Come World War I and he had to be satisfied organising and leading the Kumaon Labour Corps to France and Waziristan as captain. Later, as a jungle specialist, he was invited to be an instructor training troops in jungle warfare -- which entailed knowing and interpreting the jungle -- rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel.

Knowledge of the jungle came from his birth and childhood in Kaladhungi, in the densely forested Kumaon terai, and Nainital. His father, a postmaster, received a land grant in Kaladhungi. This made him a sort of zamindar. Having grown in and around the jungle with some skill as a shikari, Corbett gradually found himself on call, even while with the railways, to save fearful villagers from maneaters. So was born the legend.

Corbett learnt that tigers and leopards became maneaters in one of two ways. They would be stung by porcupine quills, which broke and turned septic thus disabling them from hunting game. This would compel them to lift cattle and, finally, turn maneater. The other factor was the steady disappearance of the forest and smaller game. The destruction of their habitat resulted in big cats coming into conflict with settled human society. Some maneaters are reported to have killed scores, even hundreds of hapless villagers.

The dangerous task earned Corbett gratitude and fame. Honours followed: the Kaiser-i-Hind medal, conferment of Freedom of the Forests and, posthumously, the naming of Corbett National Park and Tiger Reserve after him -- due to the efforts of his friend G.B. Pant.

Pant was only one of his illustrious friends. Others included viceroy Linlithgow and United Provinces governors Hailey and Hallet, for some of whom he arranged shoots. He likewise organised a wildlife safari for the then Princess Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh in February 1950 at Tree Tops in Kenya, where he had chosen to settle after India's

Independence. He was later to boast, "When I helped her into the tree she was a princess, and when I helped her down (next morning) she was a queen." King George VI had died overnight.

Corbett estimated 3,000 to 4,000 tigers in India in 1947 and feared their extinction in 10 to 15 years because, as Lord Wavell records his telling him in his journal, "Indian politicians are no sportsmen and tigers have no votes."

AUTHORSPEAK
VIVEK MENON

Jungle Jottings
Tales of nature -- as naturally told

Ask Vivek Menon anything on wildlife and you'll get an answer spiced with an interesting tidbit, an anecdote, a story. But then the 33-year-old conservation biologist has always been a teller of tales -- on wildlife. "I'd always have interesting stories to tell my friends," says Menon and with a sheepish grin adds, "over a glass of rum of course." Now he's strung them -- not all, but some from his vast repertory of stories -- in a book, On the Brink (Penguin).

As the title suggests, the book is about those species -- seven mammals, three birds, one tree and a reptile -- on the verge of extinction and fighting hard to survive. Having extensively travelled in the wilds of India, Menon documents their stories with empathy and a generous sprinkling of anecdotes. Mischievously, even investing animal-like qualities to humans. The immediate reason for writing this book was to have a look back, a kind of stock-taking of his work on conservation spanning over a decade. "Being a conservationist can be disheartening for there's a lot to fight against," he says. On the Brink is a yardstick in that sense. And also a tool to reach out to the unconverted, especially Generation Next, in a non-didactic way.

Menon is no modern-day Mowgli but animals have always been close to his heart. His first pet was "as simple and staid" as a dog, but he also kept birds as different as eagles and owls. Having tolerant parents helped; a father who believed in chucking jobs made it better for it gave him a taste of India. However, it was while studying in Chandigarh and trekking for long stretches that Menon's love for animals and for the outdoors truly emerged. "I knew whatever I did, I just had to be out there."

So for over 10 years he's been out there as a firefighter for endangered species -- the rhino in Kaziranga, the Olive Ridley in Gahirmatha, the blackbuck in Gujarat, the elephant in Kerala's Wyanad. A stint with WWF later, he is now adviser to a host of other NGOs and nurturing his interest in filmmaking. A man of many roles, his mission remains the same -- to save whatever little wildlife that is left. Writing and photography are his other loves. Menon has penned columns for newspapers, written a quiz book for children and has plans to write more books. "I've many more stories to tell," he says. He should.

-Bindu Menon

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