Charles Darwin showed interest in Indian biodiversity: Book

British naturalist Charles Darwin never touched India during his famed global expedition that led to formulation of the theory of evolution which revolutionized the human outlook of the world.
  
However, Darwin, who showed a keen interest in biodiversity of the subcontinent,sourced study materials from his contacts in India, according to a recent book on Darwin by eminent writer and Marxist ideologue P Govinda Pillai.
   
On returning to England after his legendary five-year-long voyage around the world on 'HMS Beagle' in 1836, Darwin made enquiries on Indian flora and fauna from British scholars and officials posted in India at that time.   

His Indian sources varied from scholars connected to Royal Asiatic Society in Kolkota to British political residents in the princely state of Travancore - Gen William Kallan, Pillai says in his book Charles Darwin—Jeevithavum Kalavum (Charles Dawrin—life and time), brought out this year to mark the 200th birth anniversary of Darwin and 150th year of publication of' his work On the Origin of Species by Natural Selection.
 
His theory that all life species have evolved over time from common ancestors also figured in intellectual debates sparked by pioneers of Indian renaissance like Swami Vivekananda and Sri Aurobindo in late 19th century and early 20th century.
  
It was through his friend John Grant Malcolm, a physician and geologist, that Darwin contacted Kallan and from whom he obtained some accounts of the biodiversity of not only Kerala, but also other areas in the southern peninsula like the Godavari Basin, the book says.

Though Kallan is not a popular figure in local history, being an ardent imperialist, he had a rational outlook and was a keen science enthusiast. He collected samples of fossils from places he visited, Pillai says in his book.

On coming to know about this from his friend, Darwin contacted Kallan to source some samples, including biological samples like shells of marine lives from the Bay of Bengal, Pillai notes,citing correspondence between Malcolm and Darwin.
   
Kallan died in 1862 in Alappuzha in Kerala and he was buried in a Protestant church there.
  
Besides carrying out his official duties,Kallan used to explore the ecosystem of Kerala and its natural resources. He prepared notes on them and forwarded them to his higher ups, Pillai says.
 
According to experts on Darwin,his Origin of species.. and its sequel The Descent of Man have many references to India that he gathered from various sources, including the Curator of Asiatic Society, Edward Blyth, a multi-faceted scholar.

While Vivekananda approached "Darwinism" with a constructive but critical outlook, Aurobindo was a trenchant critic of the scientist’s theory of evolution,Pillai observes.

Once on a visit to the zoological park in Calcutta with a disciple, Vivekananda observed a python with circular skin patches. He said "the turtle might have evolved from this reptile over time. The snake might have remained static in the same place for long with its skin getting harder like that of a turtle", he noted, recalling the discovery of Darwin.