One day in May 1921 the Clarence River’s then small riverside settlement of Lawrence saw the birth of an Indian boy known as Ramsamy but no one foresaw that he would live to become one of the world’s most courageous snake handlers and the first provider of the deadly and highly poisonous Taipan venom.

Ramsamy’s parents were known simply as “the Chandras.” Unknown to them, their child soon started collecting live lizards and small snakes as his favourite pastime and taking them home to his bed.

When they discovered his naive habit, they were totally unaware that Ramsamy would one day be presented with an Order of Australia Medal and a British Empire Medal for his contributions to science as a herpetologist.

I first met Ramsamy, who in his adult years went under the name of Ram Chandra, at an agricultural show on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast when he was demonstrating safe snake handling techniques to farmers.

During a discussion I had with him at the time, I happened to mention to him that I had worked in Africa and had met another world famous snake man, John Philip Ionides, who lived and worked in Tanganyika and had also been the recipient of international recognition for his deep study and understanding of Africa’s vast snake population spanning many more species than those in Australia.

On hearing my news, Ram Chandra declared himself a friend of mine for life as he had always wanted to meet Ionides to compare herpetological notes with him.

I was able to tell Ram Chandra how Ionides had first been a gamekeeper in Africa before providing top scientists in London with never before known details of little-seen African snakes until his death in 1968.

Ionides also made his name in East Africa for having survived an attack by a wild elephant who also buried him headfirst in one of the world’s most isolated areas. After managing to extricate himself from his potential burial site, he had miraculously managed to walk to hospital and survive the ordeal with many a broken bone.

After his amazing recovery, Ionides was christened “Iodine” for all the red blotches of iodine his body carried for some time afterwards.

He was also referred to as the “hat snake catcher” as he often caught snakes by placing his broad brimmed hat over any unwary snake in his path. I was present on one such occasion when he captured a lurking and very poisonous Black Mamba as a simple demonstration to show off his prowess while I was ensuring I was well and truly out of the way.

I am not aware, however, that “Iodine” knew of Ram Chandra during the times I met up with him in the 1950s while working in Africa as a foreign correspondent and journalist.

It took me four more decades and my migration to Australia to finally meet Lawrence’s famous herpetologist. I researched the man’s background and soon discovered how he had earned his just dues in Australia.

As a young man, Ram Chandra had taken part in local entertainment shows, including the “Pit of Death” in Sydney after World War ll.

He later became responsible for the true scientific identification of Australia’s deadly Taipan snakes as a separate species from the Great Eastern Brown variety, earning himself yet another title as ‘the Taipan Man.”

In 1957, Ram Chandra successfully milked a Taipan for the first time in world history. The venom he acquired during a highly dangerous handling operation was freeze-dried and was sent to the Commonwealth Serum Laboratories in Melbourne.

Just four years later, the laboratories were able to tell Queenslanders in particular that they now had an answer to their big fears of instant death from a Taipan bite, usually in that State’s sugar plantations.

After saving a number of Taipan victim’s lives, Ram Chandra was himself bitten by a Taipan which left him with life-long medical problems before his death in Mackay in 1998.

After being recognised by Australian and international awards, the former child from Lawrence was recognised by the Australian Government as having run the country’s most dangerous business. The people of Queensland also had a song written about him and his history-making Taipan achievements.