Kanha: A Lifelong Love

A few days ago, I called Ranjitsinh Ji and asked,

‘Mandla is usually a first charge for a Collector. Why were you posted there after your tenure as Collector, Dhar?’

‘I had requested for a posting to Mandla, the only time I had sought a posting of my choice. There’s a little story behind it.

During 1943-44, my maternal uncle Nagendra Singh, ICS was Collector, Mandla, and we went there for a year-end family holiday. I was then 5. My uncle and father had promised to take me along for a trip to Kanha but didn’t wake me up when they left on 1^st January, 1944 at 4.00 AM. I was so furious at being left behind that I ran up to the terrace, banged my head on the parapet, and swore that one day I’d return here as Collector, and proceed for my jungle safari by leaving behind uncle and dad, so tells my Mami.’

My Kanha

Dr. Ranjitsinh thus begins his  article My Kanha [i]:

“It is not possible for me to be objective about Kanha;” and ends with unabashed sentimentality for his lifelong love,

“I shall always return to Kanha. My daughters will throw my ashes on the Kanha meadows and immerse some in the Shravan Tal, if the park authorities permit.”

Barasingha

Barasingha is the State Animal of Madhya Pradesh. Rucervus duvaucelii, commonly known as the barasingha or swamp deer, is a majestic deer species native to the Indian subcontinent. Its name literally means “twelve-tined,” referring to the impressive antlers of mature males. The animal is in IUCN Red-List (classified as Vulnerable.)

R. d. branderi (Hardground Barasingha) is found in Kanha National Park, Madhya Pradesh.

‘The central Indian barasingha Cervus duvauceli branderi is named after the remarkable author-naturalist Dunbar Brander who had been a DFO in Mandla.’ (M.K. Ranjitsinh)

R. d. duvaucelii is found in swampy grasslands of Uttar Pradesh, southern Nepal, Kaziranga.

The Eastern Barasingha of Assam is named R. d. ranjitsinhi!

The current population of barasingha in the core area of Kanha Tiger Reserve is about 1050. In 1968, Ranjitsinh had counted 66, after which he initiated measures  that saved this rare species from extinction. He was instrumental in voluntary shifting of Sonph, the first ever village to be relocated outside the core park area in India.

"In 1964, in Kanha, I met a young officer named M.K. Ranjitsinh, who had joined government service in 1961 and come to Kanha on a visit. Known to his acquaintances as Ranjit, he was, to my delight, much interested in wildlife. I told him that the barasingha or swamp deer which gathered in small herds seasonally on the meadow in front of our bungalow were declining because of poaching by local people and outsiders. Perhaps fewer than 100 were left of this distinct subspecies-one found only in Central India. Ranjit became the administrator of the district in which Kanha is located, in 1967 and promptly sprung into action. In cooperation with an American friend, Fred Stoever, he had a predator-secure enclosure built at the edge of the meadow. Most of the barasinghas were then housed within it. These captives bred well, and soon, some were released back into the wild both within the park and in the adjoining forests."

(Foreword by George B. Schaller, Mountain Mammals of the World by Dr. M. K. Ranjitsinh)

Bhoorsingh The Barasingha

The official mascot "Bhoorsingh The Barasingha" was unveiled by Kanha Tiger Reserve in March 2017 to raise awareness of this unique deer, underscoring MP’s special connection to the species.

'Bhoor' in Hindi translates to 'tawny/golden' and 'Singh', 'antlers'.

KTR runs ‘Bhoor Singh School’ for kids of forest officials posted in the park.

Mountain Mammals of the World

The author’s magnum opus published in 2024 (in his 86^th year!) is a richly illustrated global compendium of mountain-living mammals (62 species, 78–119 taxa).

Here is the author’s fascinating narrative of his close encounter with a female Saddleback Mountain Gorilla at Virunga National Park, Rwanda:

"She came straight towards me. Laden as I was with cameras and a tripod, I braced myself for the impact from the hurtling ape by turning sideways. She stopped abruptly just short of me, looked up straight into my eyes, touched my protruding left flank ever so gently, turned around and left. As she turned, I instinctively touched her shoulder. She showed no response to the physical contact but knuckle-walked back to her troop. Our guide walked up to me and officiously announced, 'Sir, you are not allowed to touch the gorillas'-a rule to prevent the transmission of human pathogens to the animals. Still in a trance, I replied that I was sorry but could not help myself. Then, in an unnecessary epilogue, I added that all my life, females had occasionally made passes at me, but I had been too shy to respond. 'This perhaps was my last chance,' I said. He and the group laughed, and the guide walked away. It remains one of my most memorable moments of close contact with wild animals."

Books by Dr. M.K. Ranjitsinh

1. The Indian Blackbuck (1989)

2. Indian Wildlife (1995)

3. Beyond the Tiger: Portraits of Asian Wildlife (1997)

4. Goats on the Border: A Rapid Assessment of the Pir Panjal Markhor in Jammu and Kashmir (2005)

5. Rudyard Kipling: The Complete Verse (2008)

6. A Life with Wildlife: From Princely India to the Present (2017)

An autobiography and memoir interwoven with the story of wildlife policy and conservation in India — covering his personal journey and pivotal events, including the Bhopal Gas Disaster (he was then the Divisional Commissioner, Bhopal), and creation of national parks.

7. Mountain Mammals of the World (2024)

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[i] https://www.sanctuarynaturefoundation.org/article/my-kanha?utm_source=chatgpt.com