Uttarakhand: Villager claims he has ‘khukri’, sword gifted by Corbett; admin to verify

PITHORAGARH: A resident of Gaudi village in Champawat district of Kumaon, Prakash Bora, has claimed to have found a ‘khukri’ (carved knife) and sword given by famous hunter and environmentalist Jim Corbett to his ancestor Dungar Singh who had helped Corbett pin down the location of a fearsome man-eater tigress on the Champawat-Gaudi road in 1907. Corbett also mentioned Dungar Singh in his book ‘Man-eaters of Kumaon’ in which he described the hunt for the tigress who had killed an estimated 436 people in the region. This was apparently the first man-eater killed by Corbett. The ‘khukri’ and sword were discovered by Bora’s family last week in the godown of their home.
Taking note of the villager’s claims, the Champawat district administration said that they will have the ‘khukri’ and sword examined and also carbon-dated, if possible, to determine their antiquity. “If it is indeed found to have a Corbett connection, we will highlight this in the Corbett circuit of Kumaon being planned for tourists,” said a district official.
Speaking to TOI, Bora said that his ancestor, Dungar Singh died almost 30 years ago. “Occasionally, some people, mostly tourists, used to come to our house asking about him and his association with Corbett since they had read his name being mentioned by Corbett in his book. They also used to ask us if Corbett had given anything to him for his help in tracking the man-eater since the hunter was known to gift things to his associates,” Bora said.
Although the family knew that Dungar Singh had been given a ‘khukri’ and sword by Corbett, they were not sure where these items were kept. However, last week, both the items were discovered in a godown under a pile of wood. “We have informed government officials regarding the find,” Bora said.
Lata Bisht, district tourism officer, Champawat, told TOI that the items can be a big attraction for tourists in the region. “We are planning to develop a ‘Corbett circuit’ in Champawat and have identified four places where he tracked and subsequently killed the man-eater tigress of Champawat. These items can add to the things that tourists can see,” Bisht said.