Uttarakhand: Unsolved mystery of 28 snow leopard skins from Imperial Cadet Corps 

Snow leopards are rightly termed ‘ghosts of the mountains’, as their sighting is extremely rare. The terrain in which the snow leopards move and dwell is challenging for humans to access easily. After killing deer and tigers, a ‘Shikari’ used to head for the high Himalayas to shoot down a snow leopard to achieve the first-rate game hunter statues.

A strange case took place during British rule at an institute in Dehradun. The incident was peculiar! The Imperial Cadet Corps (ICC), providing military education and training to youths of princely families, found it impossible to trace the source of the 28 snow leopard skins present in their collection. The skins were sent from Dehradun to Peshawar for storage and got sold there as it was difficult for the ICC to look after them.

The story of the high number of snow leopard skins traced during British rule in Dehradun will surprise wildlife experts and lovers, as the population of this endangered species was never very high.

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A new study by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (Government of India) shows the presence of just 718 snow leopards in India. The estimated populations in different states are: Ladakh (477), Uttarakhand (124), Himachal Pradesh (51), Arunachal Pradesh (36), Sikkim (21) and Jammu and Kashmir (9). Twenty-eight is not a small number.

The mystery of the 28 snow leopard skins never got solved. How did the Imperial Cadet Corps get them? Were they purchased or received as a gift from someone? Were they hunting trophies of the ICC?

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The issue came to light in 1916, when the ICC (Dehradun) found it hard to store the big collection of snow leopard skins. The institute wanted to create some free space in their store for other materials. For this, an investigation about the source from where the skins were obtained started. The entire exercise was to know about the price at which they were purchased. Terming it rare and needing careful attention, the first search operation concluded on 5 September 1916 with an official note: “Paper regarding the purchase of the skins and their value are not readily traceable.”

As the Imperial Cadet Corps wanted to discard the 28 snow leopard skins, another search operation started soon, and in his 20 September 1920 communication, the ICC commanding officer office states, “There is nothing in the records of the office to show when all the skins were purchased & what their value is. A bill from Cockburn’s Agency, dated 29 February 1908, for two skins giving the price of Rs 50 and Rs 55 respectively. The other skins were probably brought in 1902-03.”

After a long official process and approval from the Foreign and Political Department (Shimla), a private firm was shortlisted. Mull Chand & Sons - furrier, carpets and curio dealer based in Shimla and Peshawar- offered the storing facility for the entire lot for a monthly charge of Rs 10. The firm asked the Imperial Cadet Corps that the leopard skins should be perfectly cured, and the firm will take no responsibility for any damage, if any, caused by the storage.

Three files are in the collection of the National Archives of India (New Delhi), which document the unusual incident related to 28 snow leopard skins and their disposal. The rare snow leopard skins finally reached Peshawar in 1916 and stayed there for over four years.

Once the snow leopard furs reached Mull Chand & Sons store, nobody from the Imperial Cadet Corps ever bothered to approach them. In March 1920, the firm was forced to contact the ICC and ask them to collect their 28 snow leopard furs, as it was hard for them to keep storing them for long. They also asked the academy to pay Rs 520 as storage charges.

As the letter from the firm from Peshawar reached Dehradun again, a confusing official process began. Right from inspecting the skins, accessing their condition, and finding buyers. The idea of auctioning failed miserably, and finally, Mull Chand & Sons was authorised to sell the snow leopard skins in Peshawar at a fair price.

To sell the rare furs, the firm placed an advertisement in an English-language newspaper in Peshawar. They finally managed to sell the lot for Rs 500. After deducting Rs 50 as commission, the firm deposited Rs 450 in the treasury.

The firm executed a complicated exercise but was yet to get payment for storing the skins for four years and one month. The Imperial Cadet Corps paid the amount on 14 March 1921.

The 28 snow leopard skins were sold for Rs 500; their storage charge was Rs 520; and an additional Rs 50 was paid as commission. The Imperial Cadet Corps had to pay a total of Rs 70 and spend a long time in the process to dispose of the 28 snow leopard skins.

The whole operation took about five years to complete. An advertisement published in an English daily in 1922 shows information about the sale of snow leopard skins taking place in Kashmir, and each fur was offered for Rs 350. Rather than making money, the ICC had to spend money to somehow get rid of the snow leopard skins.

Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost_’s views._

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