Nain Singh Rawat

Nain Singh Rawat
The (explorer) cartographer Nain Singh Rawat (19th century) received a Royal Geographical Society gold medal in 1876.
Born	1830
Died	1895
Nationality	Indian
Occupation	Asian explorer

Nain Singh Rawat (Hindi: नैन सिंह रावत), 1830–1895, was one of the first of the late 19th century pundits who explored the Himalayas for the British. He hailed from the Johar Valley of Kumaon. He mapped the trade route through Nepal to Tibet, determined for the first time the location and altitude of Lhasa, and mapped a large section of the Tsangpo, the major Tibetan river.

Rai Bahadur Nain Singh Rawat was born to Lata Burha in 1830 in Milam village, a Bhotia village in the valley of Johar, at the foot of the Milam glacier where the river Goriganga originates. The Rawats ruled over the Johar valley, during the reign of Chand dynasty in Kumaon; this was followed by the Gorkha rule. In 1816 the British defeated the Gorkhas but maintained a policy of non-interference and friendship towards the Johar Bhotias. The famous Bhotia explorers mostly belong to the village of Johar.

After leaving school, Nain Singh helped his father. He visited different centres in Tibet with him, learned the Tibetan language, customs and manners and became familiar with the Tibetan people. This knowledge of Tibetan language and local customs and protocol came handy in Nain Singh's work as "Spy Explorer". Due to the extreme cold conditions, Milam and other villages of the upper Johar valley are inhabited only for a few months from June to October. During this time the men used to visit Gya'nyima, Gartok and other markets in Western Tibet.

Each Indian trader of Johar, had a 'mitra' or colleague in Tibet. Initially, the splitting of a stone, each keeping one half, marked their partnership in trade. Henceforth, the Indian trader or his representative would carry the token to sell his goods in Tibet market only to his mitra's representative who would fit his half of the stone to the Indian's.

In 1855, Nain Singh Rawat, now a well-disposed and intelligent man of 25 years, of traditional Bhotia stature – short, stocky and stubborn – was first recruited by German geographers the Schlagintweit brothers. Baron Humboldt had sent these German scientists to the office of the Survey of India, which reluctantly allowed them to proceed with their survey.