Man-Eaters of Kumaon

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The time difference between when it was written and now shows in terms of the values, societal changes and even the language. In that sense this was more historically significant literature than many history books. Jhala, Y.V., Qureshi, Q. & Nayak, A.K. (Eds.). (2020a). Status of tigers, copredators and prey in India, 2018. National Tiger Conservation Authority, Government of India, New Delhi, and Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun. https://ntca.gov.in/assets/uploads/Reports/AITM/Tiger_Status_Report_2018.pdf

WWF India. (2016). Global wild tiger population increases, but still a long way to go. Retrieved December 30, 2020, from https://www.wwfindia.org/?15361/Global-wild-tiger.

Ritvo, H. (1987). The animal estate: The English and other creatures in the Victorian age. Harvard University Press. Tigers!! OMG! , As much as I was frightened and was uncomfortable because of my heartbeat while reading the book, my fear was partially undermined by the awesomeness and the incredible beauty of this magnificent beast!! Sein Leben muss unglaublich abenteuerreich gewesen sein und hätte definitiv ein besseres Buch verdient. This is the story of the sort of British imperialist in India who is seldom now remembered. Jim Corbett came of an undistinguished family who had lived in India for generations, and although British in his race, dress, speech and habits, simply was an Indian in his own country, as much as anyone of Indian descent can be British or American. He started work as a minor official of an Indian railway, but his greatest interest was in the wildlife of the northern Indian jungles, which he frequented alone since early childhood. He always claimed that for someone who knows enough not to give provocation, the jungle was extremely safe.

Shresth, S. (2009). Sahibs and shikar: Colonial hunting and wildlife in British India, 1800-1935. (Doctoral Dissertation). Duke University Libraries. Retrieved February 24, 2017, from https://dukespace.lib.duke.edu/dspace/handle/10161/1647. Beardsworth, A., & Bryman, A. (2001). The wild animal in late modernity: The case of the Disneyization of zoos. Tourist Studies, 1(1), 83–104. Jha, P. (2020). U’khand HC issues notice to state govt on killing of man-eaters after PIL claims over 200 animals killed by private shooters in state since 2012. Times of India. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/ukhand-hc-issues-notice-to-state-govt-on-killing-of-man-eaters-after-pil-claims-over-200-animals-killed-by-private-shooters-in-state-since-2012/articleshow/79666850.cms. I first read this book many many years ago and it stayed in my mind. Recently one or two things raised it in my memory and I decided it would be good to read it again while waiting for another book to arrive. Given that this was written in the middle of the last century about events in the first half of that century it is remarkably readable and timeless. Jhala, Y. V., Qureshi, Q. & Yadav, S. P. (2020b). Status of leopards in India, 2018 (technical report TR/2020/16). National Tiger Conservation Authority, Government of India, New Delhi, and Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun. https://ntca.gov.in/assets/uploads/Reports/AITM/Status_Leopard_India_2018web.pdf

Tapper, R. L. (1994). Animality, humanity, morality, society. In T. Ingold (Ed.), What is an animal? (pp. 47–62). Routledge. It is clear from the very beginning, how much Corbett loves the wilderness and all the incredible wild animals. But he finds himself in a very uncomfortable situation, when he has to decide whether he should save the lives of the helpless villagers who are frightened to death by the 'Man-Eating' tigers and are living their lives, afraid of every sound or movement outside their house, or whether he should leave them at the mercy of the Tigers, that develops a taste for human flesh because of certain factors and conditions ( Corbett explains several of the reasons for tigers or leopards becoming Man-Eaters. 1- When a tiger is wounded so badly from some fight between other tigers or animals, or from a Hunter's gun that didn't kill it but wounded it badly, or from some accident that happened while it handles it's prey - Eg. The most common and fatal of this type is injury from Porcupine quils. In all above circumstances, the tiger is handicapped and so it is impossible for it to catch it's normal prey, so it resorts to the easiest prey nearby- Humans! 2.- When a tiger accidentally happens to get to eat the abandoned corpses of the people the died during an epidemic. But when the epidemiy is over , the tiger suddenly finds it's supply of easy food cut out. So it frequents the nearby villages ( mostly at night) and kills people. In their normal and healthy condition, Tigers or Leopards don't see humans as a prey. )

The last of the stories, “The Talla Des Man-Eater,” is the most gripping: Corbett unexpectedly comes upon three tigers resting in a field. He is able to kill two of them and wound the third. The wounded tiger, he learns, is the mother of the two “cubs” he slew. The best part was probably his attitude toward the animals he killed. His respect for them is clear, and several times in the text he even expresses his regret that he had to carry out the deed. Ultimately, though, his desire to protect the humans being preyed upon outweighs this, and he puts each animal down. Still, he is compassionate, and tries his best to make the kill as painless for the animal as possible. Deshmukh, A. (2014). There is a message of nature conservation in Corbett’s writings. The Times of India [Nagpur]. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/There-is-a-message-of-nature-conservation-in-Corbetts-writings-Archana-Deshmukh/articleshow/34268420.cms The Bachelor of Powalgarh: The exciting tale of how Corbett shot the much sought after trophy tiger (non man-eater) in 1930.

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Just Tigers: Corbett talks about the importance of conservation and his love of photographing tigers in the place of shooting them The Mohan Tiger is the second of the three man-eaters. The Kanda Tiger is the third of the District Conference tigers that Corbett killed. In “The Panar Man-Eater,” he must watch the suffering of a girl torn from the jaws of a tiger: “I sincerely hope that no one who reads this story will ever be condemned to seeing and hearing the sufferings of a human being … that has had the misfortune of being caught by the throat by either a leopard or a tiger, and not having the means … of alleviating or of ending the suffering.” The final chapter, in 1938 when Corbett is 63 years old, tells of the last man-eating tiger he hunts, the Thak man-eater which proves to be one of the most dramatic kills.

Ponde, R. S. (2012). Man, nature and wild life as depicted in the jungle literature of Jim Corbett and Kenneth Anderson: A comparative study. (Doctoral Dissertation). Retrieved May 16, 2016, from https://hdl.handle.net/10603/25467.

Rani, P. & Kumar, N. (2017). Man-eaters of Kumaon: a critique of modernity. Rupkatha Journal on Interdisciplinary Studies in Humanities, 9(1), 206–215. https://doi.org/10.21659/rupkatha.v9n1.21. But he wasn't just a hunter--he was also a conservationist! He laments the big cats that must be put down after they become man-eaters and he praises their beauty. Later in life, he published a book of wildlife photography. The oldest national park in India--created to protect endangered tigers--is named after him.