Salim Ali (1896-1987) |
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As a young man Salim had to face years of unemployment and hardship. There were hardly any jobs available for ornithologists in India and so in 1919 Salim moved to Burma to look after the family mining and timber business. It was a rewarding experience for the naturalist as there were endless opportunities for exploring the forests of Burma. |
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When Salim
Ali heard of an opening as a guide lecturer at the newly opened natural
history section of the Prince of Wales Museum in Mumbai he decided to
study further in order to qualify for the job. Salim went to Germany and
trained under Professor Stresemann, an acknowledged ornithologist in
Berlin. However, when he came back to India he found out that there were still hardly any opportunities in his profession. Another man would have given up in disgust, but not Salim. He decided to create an opportunity. He went to the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) and offered his free services for conducting regional ornithological surveys. His only condition was that he should be provided funding for camping, and transportation costs. The BNHS spoke to some Princely States about the idea. The States were only too eager to have their birds recorded for posterity, and they readily agreed to this novel plan. From there onwards Salim began his life as a nomad, moving from state to state and recording the variety of bird life in India. Salim was living the best years of his career. The long hours spent in the field studying birds made him one of those rare Indians who really knew each and every part of their country. Ali's wife accompanied him during these travels although the camp conditions were particularly hard for her. Says Salim Ali "It is seldom one gets an opportunity in life to do what one wants to do. I think the best results are those when you are doing something worthwhile which you enjoy doing without the motivation of material reward. I have been exceptionally fortunate in that I was able to indulge my abiding interest of ornithology and natural history in some small measure and add to my scientific knowledge. It is something about which I can feel truly gratified." |
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After
India's Independence from the British rule, Salim Ali took over the BNHS
and, managed to save the 200 - year old institution from closing down
due to lack of funds by writing to the then Prime Minister Nehru for
help. The Prime Minister immediately came to the rescue and gave the
society funds to tide over its difficult period. It was his sincerity that won him numerous awards and medals from all over the world including the J. Paul Getty International Award, the Golden Ark of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the golden medal of the British Ornithology Union and a Padma Shree and Padma Vibhushan from the Indian Government. Dr. Ali was nominated to the Rajya Sabha in 1985. But despite all the fame and adulation showered upon him, Dr. Ali remained what he was as a nine year old - an ever curious person with a passion for birds. Dr.Salim Ali authored numerous books, including the Handbook of the Birds of India and Pakistan (co-authored with S. Dillon Ripley) in ten volumes, books on birds of Sikkim, Kutch etc. His Book of Indian Birds with its lively descriptions and pictures can be used even by the common man. Dr Salim Ali passed away in 1987 at the age of 91, after a prolonged battle with prostate cancer.
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