|
|
Posted by K.Jayaraman on September 07, 19103 at 13:33:40:
In Reply to: Re: I am planning to go to all the kenneth anderson sites in october,anyone cares enough to join? posted by Sandhya on July 25, 19102 at 03:58:40:
Hi Dushyant, Iam in Bangalore,and i wiil join you. I have already visited Diguvametta. My visit details as follows
Hunting the Ghost of the Hunter
Jungle adventures have always fascinated me from my childhood. My grandfather, Sri.D.V.Nagaratnam, was DFO of Ooty in 50’s and my jaunts with him in the jungles of Mudumalai as a young boy , must be the reason for my interest in jungles. He even christened one newborn elephant as Jayaraman, my name and it is still alive in Theppakkadu camp.
Reading the jungle lores of Jim Corbett and Kenneth Anderson, in dim lit houses of green Kerala, I wished to see the places where they hunted. This wish was fulfilled recently in Aug 2003, when myself along with good friends Dr Sastry and Ramadas, drove to from Bangalore to Nandyal in Andhra Pradesh in search of the ghost of Kenneth Anderson.
The spirit of Kenneth Anderson, still lives in Diguvametta. As you drive in the wonderful scenic route ( Bless the contractor and engineers who laid it !), the Nallamalai range of jungles start from Gajulapalli. From here till Diguvametta, the winding ghat road goes through thick forests where tigers and panthers roamed freely 50 years ago. This is where Kenneth Anderson hunted the in of Diguvametta, a man-eating panther ( page 87 , Omnibus Vol I ).Chenchu tribals have there camp at Pacharla, a hamlet on the road, where you can buy designer bamboo sticks with intricate patters woven on the stick by burning them with delicate hand movements on a fire.
As you drive along, chugging train to Guntur accompanies you. This is a new broad gauge line, with ghost towers and tunnels of old metre gauge line of Anderson days high above the road like sentinels of yester years. The green forests with good road and virtually no traffic, is the one of best drives in India.The mountain road joins the plains at Diguvameeta.
As you enter the hamlet, you will find on the left,the historic Forest Bungalow, steeped in jungle lores. The compound is overgrown with weeds. Jungle with thick undergrowth starts from the 3 foot high pat wall in front yard hardly 50 feet away from the verandah.In one corner of the front yard, you will find a tombstone which reads
“MISCHIEF”
A Lovable Little Friend
14 th May 1911
This pet dog of a British Collector, named Mischief was killed by a panther on this spot. The official shot the panther along with the dog in the same spot. He got a tombstone specially made from England and placed it there. Many years later, the Caretaker Aleem Khans sister daughter , young girl Peeaaree was told this story. She used to place flowers every day, till late one evening while placing flowers , she was killed by the panther on the same spot. Kenneth Anderson dressed as an Indian, sat on Mischief’s grave and tried to kill the panther in vain. He later killed it in the railway tunnel high in the mountains.
Myself and my friends sat silently on the pat wall listening to the sounds of the jungle. We could feel Kenneth Anderson sitting on the verandah in the chair, wife of Aleem Khan filling the tank above the roof of western room for his shower. Aleem Khan’s dog begging for crumbs near Anderson’s chair, the excited voice of Peearee placing flowers on Mischief’s grave and the growl of the in of Diguvametta.
From the gate of the Forest Bungalow, across the road, you can see the outer signal of Diguvametta railway station, and water spout of steam engine era. On this outer signal, the gangman was killed by the panther, while he was lighting the signal lamp at 6 P.M. The railway station at Diguvametta has not changed from Anderson days.
The few hours we spent at Diguvametta was an unfogettable experience of a lifetime. Luckily, the location is unspoilt till today.