The Jim Corbett National Park in Uttarakhand is best known for its population of Bengal tigers and is one of the oldest national parks in India. The story of Jim Corbett, the hunter who became one of India's most well-known naturalists.
James Edward Corbett was born in Nainital in 1875. He grew up exploring the forests of Uttarakhand and spending time in the great outdoors.
He gained a unique understanding of big cats of the jungle due to his experience in the wild. He began gaining recognition in the region after he hunted and killed man-eating about a dozen tigers and leopards.
The local government soon called on him to hunt man-eating animals that posed a threat to villagers in Kumaon and Garhwal. In his lifetime, he wrote several books about his experiences with tigers, including 'My India' and 'Jungle Lore'.
He describes his first encounter with a man-eater in his first book, 'The Man-Eaters of Kumaon'. He came across her as she fed what would be her last human prey. He followed her for hours before shooting her the next day.
Over time, he became fascinated by tigers. In the 1920s, he began capturing photographs of tigers in cinematography. By 1934 he had abandoned hunting entirely but continued to photograph wildlife and began to engage in conservation efforts.
It was he who helped establish India's first national park in Kumaon in 1934. The park was called Hailey National Park after Sir Malcolm Hailey, governor of the United Provinces. After independence, it was renamed Ramganga National Park.
After India gained independence, Corbett moved to Kenya. He died in 1955, after suffering a heart attack. A year later, the park he had helped establish was renamed Jim Corbett National Park