12 Cheetahs from South Africa to land at Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park
An Air force C-17 aircraft has taken off from South Africa carrying the big cats and will reach the Gwalior airbase on Saturday morning.
- Feb 18, 2023,
- Updated Feb 18, 2023 10:49 AM IST
Five female cheetahs and seven male cheetahs from South Africa will arrive in Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park on Saturday, five months after eight big cats were brought from Namibia. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Saturday said that the cheetahs will be released into their quarantine enclosures.
"In Kuno National Park today, the number of Cheetahs is going to increase. I thank PM Modi from the bottom of my heart, it is his vision. 12 Cheetahs will be rehabilitated to Kuno & total number will become 20," Chouhan said.
On Friday, Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav that the cheetahs had begun their journey. “Get ready to welcome them," he wrote.
An Air force C-17 aircraft has taken off from South Africa carrying the big cats and will reach the Gwalior airbase around 10.30 am today. After customs and other clearances, they will be transported to Kuno National Park at around 11 am in M-17 choppers. India and South Africa signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in January 2022. This is for the time that cheetahs from South Africa to India as part of the government's initiative to expand the cheetah meta-population and to reintroduce the mammals in the country.
Here are the top points you need to know about Cheetahs' arrival to India:
1. The big cats were sedated and loaded into crates, and started their journey from Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport. They were well hydrated with drips and their collar fittings were also checked before they started their journey.
2. Three cheetahs were kept in Phinda quarantine boma in KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa, whereas nine were kept in Rooiberg Quarantine boma in Limpopo Province, said National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) head S P Yadav.
3. Cheetahs were the only large carnivore that was completely wiped out from India, mainly due to overhunting and habitat loss. The last spotted feline died in 1948 in the Sal forests of Chhattisgarh’s Koriya district.
4. The relocation of 12 cheetahs from South Africa comes three years after the idea was floated by the Narendra Modi-led government. India originally initiated plans to bring the cheetahs there by mid-2022, but a delay in finalising the Memorandum of Understanding.
5. The ‘Action Plan for Reintroduction of Cheetah in India’ prepared by the Wildlife Institute of India highlights that around 12-14 cheetahs are ideal for establishing a new cheetah population in India, which would be imported from South Africa, Namibia and other African countries as a founder stock for five years initially. Then the cheetahs will be reloacted as required by the programme.
Five female cheetahs and seven male cheetahs from South Africa will arrive in Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park on Saturday, five months after eight big cats were brought from Namibia. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Saturday said that the cheetahs will be released into their quarantine enclosures.
"In Kuno National Park today, the number of Cheetahs is going to increase. I thank PM Modi from the bottom of my heart, it is his vision. 12 Cheetahs will be rehabilitated to Kuno & total number will become 20," Chouhan said.
On Friday, Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav that the cheetahs had begun their journey. “Get ready to welcome them," he wrote.
An Air force C-17 aircraft has taken off from South Africa carrying the big cats and will reach the Gwalior airbase around 10.30 am today. After customs and other clearances, they will be transported to Kuno National Park at around 11 am in M-17 choppers. India and South Africa signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in January 2022. This is for the time that cheetahs from South Africa to India as part of the government's initiative to expand the cheetah meta-population and to reintroduce the mammals in the country.
Here are the top points you need to know about Cheetahs' arrival to India:
1. The big cats were sedated and loaded into crates, and started their journey from Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport. They were well hydrated with drips and their collar fittings were also checked before they started their journey.
2. Three cheetahs were kept in Phinda quarantine boma in KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa, whereas nine were kept in Rooiberg Quarantine boma in Limpopo Province, said National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) head S P Yadav.
3. Cheetahs were the only large carnivore that was completely wiped out from India, mainly due to overhunting and habitat loss. The last spotted feline died in 1948 in the Sal forests of Chhattisgarh’s Koriya district.
4. The relocation of 12 cheetahs from South Africa comes three years after the idea was floated by the Narendra Modi-led government. India originally initiated plans to bring the cheetahs there by mid-2022, but a delay in finalising the Memorandum of Understanding.
5. The ‘Action Plan for Reintroduction of Cheetah in India’ prepared by the Wildlife Institute of India highlights that around 12-14 cheetahs are ideal for establishing a new cheetah population in India, which would be imported from South Africa, Namibia and other African countries as a founder stock for five years initially. Then the cheetahs will be reloacted as required by the programme.