India to bring 8 cheetahs from Botswana under the Project Cheetah
Madhya Pradesh
6 min read
The Madhya Pradesh government has announced that India will soon import eight Cheetahs from Botswana as part of its Project Cheetah and will relocate them to the wild in Madhya Pradesh. The Indian government is also planning to bring more cheetahs from Kenya and South Africa and relocate them to india.
The Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister, Dr Mohan Yadav, also released two cheetahs from the Kuno National Park to the Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary on 20th April 2025.
Cheetahs are found in their natural habitat in Africa and Iran. The government of India, as part of its project Cheetah, is relocating cheetahs from African countries to India. The government of india officially declared the cheetah an extinct animal in 1952.
Cheetahs from Botswana
According to the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), the cheetahs from Botswana will be brought in two phases.
In the first phase, four cheetahs will be brought to India in May 2025.
In the second phase, four more cheetahs will be brought to India in subsequent months.
The NTCA, under the Union Ministry of Forests, Environment, and Climate Change, is the implementing agency of Project Cheetah.
Where will the Cheetah be relocated?
The cheetah will be released in the Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary in Mandsaur district of Madhya Pradesh.
So far, the cheetahs brought from Namibia and South Africa have been relocated to the Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh.
The state government has developed 8,900 hectares of area in the Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary for Botswana cheetahs.
The Gandhi Sagar sanctuary is home to an abundance of spotted deer, Sambar, and other wildlife species. It will provide sufficient food for the cheetahs.
About Project Cheetah
The cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) is the fastest mammal on earth, which can attain a maximum speed of 121km/hour.
In 2009, the Union government announced Project Cheetah, under which cheetahs from Africa and Iran were to be relocated to India.
It was the world’s first cheetah translocation project.
After Supreme Court approval, the central government announced a five-year plan to relocate 50 cheetahs to various national parks in the country.
After Iran's refusal, India signed an agreement with Namibia and South Africa to bring the cheetah to India.
On his birthday, 17 September 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi released eight cheetahs brought from Namibia at the Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh.
Twelve more cheetahs were brought from South Africa in Feburary 2023 and released in Kuno National Park.
Currently, there are 26 cheetahs in Kuno National Park.
Implementing Agency of Project Cheetah
- The Cheetah Relocation Project is being overseen by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), in partnership with the Madhya Pradesh government.
- The project is guided and directed by the committee of experts formed by the Supreme Court of India.
About Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary
- Established in 1978 with an area of 368 square kilometres.
- It is located in eastern Madhya Pradesh and spans across two districts: Mandsaur and Nimach.
- It is located in the Nimar region of Madhya Pradesh, which borders Rajasthan.
- The Chambal river flows through the sanctuary.
About Botswana
It is a landlocked country in southern Africa.
It was a British colony and was called Bechuanaland.
It gained independence in 1966.
Capital: Gaborone
Currency: Pula
President: Duma Boko
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