Environment

India to welcome 12 more cheetahs on February 18

Twelve more Cheetahs are soon going to be a part of India. Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate change, Bhupender Yadav, on February 16, announced the translocation of twelve Cheetahs from South Africa to India on February 18, 2023. The Cheetahs will be translocated to Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh. Earlier on September 17, 2022, India became home to eight African Cheetahs. Further, the Ministry of Defence and the Indian Air Force has been supporting the translocation.

The reintroduction of Cheetah to India will help in restoring the nation’s natural heritage. The last cheetahs in the Indian wilderness were recorded in 1947 where three cheetahs were shot in the Sal (Shorea robusta) forests of Koriya District, Chhattisgarh State. The main reasons for the decline of cheetah in India were large scale capture of animals from the wild for coursing, bounty and sport hunting, extensive habitat conversion along with consequent decline in prey base and in 1952 Cheetahs were declared as extinct.

Reintroduction of Cheetahs

In a historic move, the Government of India welcomed eight African Cheetahs from Namibia to Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park on September 17. The goal of Cheetah introduction project in India is to establish viable cheetah metapopulation in India that allows the cheetah to perform its functional role as a top predator and provide space for the expansion of the cheetah within its historic range thereby contributing to its global conservation efforts.

The major objectives of the introduction project are:

– To establish breeding cheetah populations in safe habitats across its historic range and manage them as a metapopulation

– To use the cheetah as a charismatic flagship and umbrella species to garner resources for restoring open forest and savanna systems that will benefit biodiversity and ecosystem services from these ecosystems

– To use the ensuing opportunity for eco-development and eco-tourism to enhance local community livelihoods and

– To manage any conflict by cheetah or other wildlife with local communities within cheetah conservation areas expediently through compensation, awareness, and management action

Government’s efforts

In this context, the Government of India initiated G2G consultative meetings with Republic of Namibia which culminated in the signing of MoU between the two countries on July 20, 2022 for cheetah conservation. Following the signing of MoU, in a historic first wild to wild intercontinental translocation, eight cheetahs were transported from Namibia to India on September 17, 2022 and were released into the quarantine bomas by the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi.

Post the mandatory quarantine period, the cheetahs have been released into the larger enclosure in phased manner. All the eight individual cheetahs are doing very well in terms of natural behaviour, body condition, activity pattern and overall fitness. All Cheetahs are doing well and hunting the wild prey.

More Cheetahs in Future

As per the Action Plan for Cheetah Introduction in India, annually 10-12 cheetahs are required to be imported from African countries for the next 5 years at least. In this context, the Government of India initiated bilateral negotiations with Republic of South Africa since 2021 for cooperation in the field of Cheetah conservation. The negotiations were successfully concluded with the signing of MoU with the Republic of South Africa in January 2023.

Under the provisions of the MoU, a first batch of 12 cheetahs (7 males, 5 females) will be translocated from South Africa to India on 18th February 2023. The translocation of 12 cheetahs from South Africa to Gwalior and onwards to Kuno National Park through Helicopters is being done by the Indian Air Force. A delegation of cheetah experts, veterinarians and senior officials will be accompanying the cheetahs during the transcontinental translocation exercise.

Post arrival in India, all 12 cheetahs will be housed in specially created enclosures at Kuno National Park for completing the mandatory quarantine period and the animals will be intensively monitored.

For taking India’s ambitious project on Cheetah Introduction forward, a consultative workshop involving international cheetah experts, scientists, veterinarians, and forest officials has been planned for the 20th February at Kuno National Park. The outcome of the workshop will pave way for better cheetah management and will help in successfully establishing cheetah metapopulation in India.

The Government of India is optimistic about the success of Project Cheetah with the active support and involvement of international experts from South Africa and Namibia, scientists, veterinarians, Government of Madhya Pradesh, Indian Oil Corporation and local communities.

 

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