Tuesday, 26 July 2022 | PNS | Dehradun
The celebration was held in a house in Kaladhungi, Nainital which was constructed by Corbett 100 years ago
The wild life lovers and locals celebrated 147th birthday of legendary Jim Corbett at his house in Kaladhungi, Nainital on Monday. The celebration was organised by the Corbett Gram Vikas Samiti at the house of Corbett which is now maintained as a museum by the Forest Department. The year 2022 marks a century of the construction of Jim Corbett’s house.
Jim Corbett was a third generation Irishman who was born and raised in India. Endearingly referred to as ‘Carpet Sahib’ by the locals, was instrumental in setting up of the first national park of the country this was later named after him.
In 1915, Corbett brought the small village of Chotti Haldwani, an area of 221 acres for fifteen hundred rupees from Guman Singh Barua .In one part of the village he constructed his house. He wanted to develop it into a model village, for it he initially settled some forty tenants there and promoted agriculture in this model Kumaoni village. He encouraged market gardening for profit and to improve villager’s diet. Jim brought banana plants of the best varieties for the village. Banana trees were imported from Tanganyika. His most successful introduction was large kernel maize from East Africa. He even tried growing coffee.
To protect his village crops from wild pigs he built a 9 km long wall around his village from his personal savings, which was five feet high and had gates to allow passage for the villagers into the forests. It took ten years to build this wall and is still securing the village. Corbett remained concerned about Chotti Haldwani even after he left India. He made his tenants owners of their land, and continued to pay land revenue on behalf of the villagers from Kenya right until his death, a deed which makes his tenants fondly remember him even today. His association with the people of his village finds mentions in the stories in his book ‘My India’.
