As part of the cheetah reintroduction program, 12 big cats from South Africa will be brought to India on Saturday, India's Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav confirmed on Thursday.
As per an official statement from the Indian Environment Ministry, “Following the import of the 12 cheetahs in February, the plan is to translocate further 12 annually for the next eight to 10 years. The terms of the MoU will be reviewed every five years to ensure it remains relevant.”
According to the Action Plan for Reintroduction of Cheetah in India, prepared by the Wildlife Institute of India, around 12-14 wild cheetahs ideal for establishing a new cheetah population will be imported from South Africa, Namibia, and other African countries as a founder stock for five years initially, and then as required by the program.
This will be the second batch of the big cats arriving in India: on 17 September, eight cheetahs were brought from Namibia and released at Kuno National Park, located in Madhya Pradesh state.
The cheetahs released at Kuno National Park included five females and three males. All the big cats are in good health.
Why Did Cheetahs Become Extinct in India?
In 1952, the spotted felines were declared extinct in India by the government after they were wiped out by coursing, hunting, and loss of natural habitat.
After 70 years, they are now being reintroduced in the country as per an agreement signed between India and South Africa to revive their population.
Most of the world's 7,000 cheetahs live in South Africa, Namibia, and Botswana. Namibia has the world's largest population of the big cats.