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Palamu News: Maharaja Surguja hunted many tigers in the dense forests of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. Palamu Tiger Reserve was the historical center of their hunting culture. At that time this area was known as Tiger Country.
Palamu. The Maharaja of Surguja is counted among those influential kings of Central India, who created a deep relationship with the forests and wild life along with the governance system. His personality was famous for courage, discipline and adherence to traditions. The Maharaja’s life was spent amidst dense forests and he considered hunting not just a royal hobby but an essential part of the respect and tradition of that time. Along with his royal duties, hunting trips were a daily part of his life.
Wildlife expert Dr. D.S. Srivastava told Local 18 that the Maharaja’s hunting area was very large, covering a large area of present-day Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. His hunting trips took place in the Semar Sot forest of Ambikapur, the dense forests of Mahuadand, the large area of Timorpingla and today’s Palamu Tiger Reserve (now Latehar district). This entire area was filled with dense forests at that time and due to the abundance of natural resources, it was considered suitable for hunting.
Hunting with local kings and plenty of wild animals
He said that in these expeditions the Maharaja often hunted along with the kings of the local princely states. He loved hunting so much that he could not stay away from it for long. Along with tigers, leopards and other wild animals were also hunted, which shows the abundance of biodiversity and forests of that time.
His diary and records show that the Maharaja hunted about 1100 to 1600 tigers in his life. His companions also joined these hunting trips and many times dozens of big hunts were done together.
At that time this entire area was known as ‘Tiger Country’, because the number of tigers was very high here. The expanse of dense forests and abundance of wild animals made it suitable for hunting. Today this area is known as the protected Palamu Tiger Reserve and Latehar forests, but in history its identity is linked to the large and effective hunting expeditions of Maharaja Surguja. This area is a living testimony of the royal traditions, richness of forests and hunting culture of that time.
