Cheetah project to bring in 12 big cats from South Africa
- Environment Ministry recently said that India and South Africa have finally signed a long-pending agreement to translocate 12 cheetahs to India.
- The cheetahs will be transported to India by February-end & reintroduced at the Kuno National Park in MP, where eight such cats were brought from Namibia in September last year under a similar agreement.
About the transport
- 12 cheetahs from South Africa annually: The initial batch of cheetahs from South Africa will be followed by transport of batches of 12 annually for the next “eight to 10 years”.
- Will be initially kept in enclosures: Cheetahs will be initially kept in enclosures and after acclimatisation they will be introduced in the wild.
- Aim of MoU on Reintroduction of Cheetah to India:
- Establishing a viable and secure cheetah population in India
- Promoting conservation
- Ensuring that expertise is shared and exchanged
- Capacity building to promote Cheetah conservation
Prelims Takeaway
- Cheetah
- Kuno National Park