Kolkata, Oct 8 (IANS) After Kuno National Park and the Gandhisagar Wildlife Sanctuary, cheetahs got another home in Madhya Pradesh, with two of them being released at the Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary on Thursday.
The animals were released in the presence of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav.
The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has called this another step towards a thriving cheetah population in India.
India now has 60 cheetahs, of which 41 were born in the country.
The birth of five cubs recently also saw the start of the Botswana lineage.
A high-level review meeting, chaired by Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Bhupender Yadav was held several days ago to assess the progress of Project Cheetah and deliberate on the future course of action.
This programme is a pioneering initiative aimed at reintroducing the cheetah in India after its extinction in the country.
The programme was initiated through the translocation of a founder population of 20 cheetahs from Namibia and South Africa, which was further supplemented by nine cheetahs from Botswana, through coordinated international cooperation and scientific planning.
Despite initial challenges associated with wildlife translocation, the project has recorded encouraging outcomes.
The birth of cheetahs in the country reflects significant growth driven by successful acclimatisation and reproduction in Indian conditions.
Survival rates of introduced individuals and cubs have been found to be in line with, and in certain cases better than, global benchmarks, demonstrating the effectiveness of scientific management and monitoring protocols.
The implementation strategy adopts a landscape-based approach for long-term sustainability.
While Kuno National Park has been developed as the primary site for establishment of the population, Gandhisagar Wildlife Sanctuary has been prepared as an additional habitat to support further expansion.
These sites are part of a larger interconnected landscape across central India to facilitate dispersal and genetic exchange.
The Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary was also prepared for translocation. Now, preparatory work is underway to expand the project to new areas, including the Banni grasslands in Gujarat, where habitat readiness and prey augmentation measures have reached satisfactory levels.
Scientific monitoring indicates that cheetahs are adapting well to Indian conditions, with stable ranging behaviour, effective prey utilisation, and no significant physiological stress observed across different management settings.
The translocation to Nauradehi will help in consolidation, expansion and strengthening of a metapopulation framework across identified landscapes.
Sustained sourcing of cheetahs from African countries is envisaged to maintain genetic diversity and support population growth.
Project Cheetah continues to make steady progress and stands as a globally significant conservation initiative.
With continued scientific guidance, institutional support and coordinated implementation, the project is well-positioned for long-term success and is expected to contribute substantially to cheetah conservation and restoration of open natural ecosystems in the country.
–IANS
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