Nain Singh Rawat

Nain Singh Rawat was trained and employed by the British Survey of India in the 19th century. He operated as a 'pundit' explorer, a specialized network of native spies and surveyors. These men were crucial for the British Empire because they could access highly restricted regions that British officers could not.

During the 1860s and 1870s, Nain Singh Rawat had to travel in disguise because the borders of Tibet were strictly closed to foreigners. If caught surveying by Chinese or Tibetan authorities, he would have been imprisoned or executed. By posing as a Buddhist pilgrim or lama, he could safely traverse the hidden Himalayan routes.

To avoid detection, Nain Singh Rawat used a combination of hidden surveying tools to secretly map his routes across Tibet. He measured distances by counting his precise number of strides using a disguised Buddhist rosary, which had exactly 100 beads instead of the usual 108. He also hid a compass in his prayer wheel and used a thermometer concealed in a small bowl to determine his altitude.

One of Nain Singh Rawat's most celebrated geographical achievements was accurately mapping the route and course of the Tsangpo River in Tibet. He was also one of the first explorers to provide the British Survey of India with an accurate location for the Tibetan capital, Lhasa. His tireless strides resulted in the most precise maps of the region available at the time.