Now a bustling tourist hotspot, Nainital seems to have forgotten all about the British woman who took the first steps towards developing it as a tourist destination 130 years ago.
Mary Jane Corbett, better known as the mother of hunter-turned environmentalist Jim Corbett, was virtually the mother of tourism activities in the hill town as she set up its first lodging facility for visitors.
This piece of history, however, seems to have been buried under the layers of time as the picturesque hill town gets busier each year with the crowd of tourists.
Mary Jane was a woman who lived in the hills of Mussoorie and Nainital and died in Nainital.
Her final resting place is also located in the lap of this town but stands neglected by the locals and tourists alike despite having the potential to become a tourist attraction.
Mary Jane was the first person to provide a lodging facility in the town and in her own little way she sowed here the seeds of tourism culture, which gradually became one of the main occupations of the people here and now shapes its economy, says Reverend Sundar Lal, who presides over the Church of St. John-in-the-wilderness where Mary Jane Corbett's grave stands.
Despite the town harvesting a fortune out of tourism activities, the mother of tourism lies neglected and forgotten, he rues.
People from various countries still come to Nainital to visit the graves of their ancestors who were buried here during the colonial era.
"It's unfortunate that the grave of the person who devoted her life to developing tourism remains deserted," says Reverend Sundar Lal.
"It also shows the apathy of those responsible for tourism development. If not for emotional reasons, this site should have been well preserved, propagated and publicized at least for promoting tourism. The remains of this grave are the parts of the history of this town. The site is worth a visit also for witnessing the peaceful environment and the natural beauty that encompasses the area," he says.
Ever since its discovery, Nainital had been a summer retreat to many.
Professor Anil Joshi of Kumaun University's History department here says, "The first European style residential building set up in the town was for the benefit of Lushington, who served as the fourth Commissioner of the Kumaon region.
"It soon became the summer capital for the governor of the United Province (later known as Uttar Pradesh) and to this day the town is graced by the presence of the Uttarakhand governor during summer.
The Britons were responsible for not only settlement and development of Nainital but can also be credited for the inception of the idea of tourism here.
Vijay Mohan Singh Khati, a tourism expert, says, "This initiative can largely be attributed to Mary Jane, more popularly recognized as the mother of Jim Corbett, the legendary hunter-turned-environmentalist and writer of Kumaon after whom Corbett National Park was renamed."
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content