Three years on, India’s cheetah reintroduction struggles with poor science, delays, and missed grassland goals. In September 2022, the arrival of eight cheetahs from Namibia to Kuno National Park was hailed as a conservation milestone. Five months later in February 2024, 12 more spotted cats arrived from South Africa. The initiative, branded Project Cheetah, carried lofty ambitions. It aimed not just to restore the world’s fastest land animal to India’s landscapes, but to revive open natural ecosystems (ONEs) — the grasslands, scrublands, and savannahs that are among the country’s most neglected habitats. By reintroducing a top predator, policymakers hoped to spark wider conservation attention, diversify India’s wildlife portfolio beyond tigers and forests, and make ecological amends for a human-caused extinction. The Cheetah Action Plan set out a clear roadmap: import 5–10 cheetahs annually for a decade, create a metapopulation across multiple states, secure and restore grassland hab...
When four tiger cubs orphaned in Panna national park on May 15, everybody was concerned about their safety. Wildlife experts thought that the life of the four cubs was at risk after their mother died under mysterious circumstances. Ever since, the cubs are at the mercy of a male tiger who had fathered them about 7 to 8 months ago. And this tiger is displaying some extraordinary pro social behavior. A picture released by the tiger reserve showed the new family equation: four cubs- three sitting on a rock while the fourth on the ground – enjoying the company of their ‘father’. It was clicked on May 22.
The Tiger Protects the Cubs
The tiger conduct has left the wildlife experts amazed. Initially, no tiger expert was sure of the safety of these cubs and the duration for which the male tiger would share his kill with the cubs. But now it appears that P243, the male tiger, is rearing the cubs like a mother. The tiger is sharing the kill and roaming around with them to protect the cubs from other park predators especially the male tigers. Now P243 has been radio collared and is being monitored round the clock to ensure safety of the cubs, the park management said. “We have heard that tiger is a solitary animal and male stays with female for a short duration of mating time. Some different story is emerging from Panna Tiger Reserve,” said the park director Uttam Kumar Sharma. “More updates to come with monitoring data, will open up new paradigms in tiger biology and raising orphan cubs in the wild”, the park management tweeted.
72 Hours of Tiger Tracking
Director of Panna tiger reserve said, “No expert can vouch for knowing the tiger’s behavior completely. Though the record of P243, is good and he is known for not harming the cubs, there is no guarantee of the longevity of the good conduct.” The absence of mother can always change the behavior. wildlife experts said. The four cubs were missing for almost three days after the sudden death their mother P213 (32). Mystery shrouded the death of the young tigress and the cause of the death was “unknown”. The matter is being investigated with visceral samples.
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For the park management, it was a double whammy. On one hand the loss of about 8 year old tigress was being mourned, on the other hand there was a big question mark over the cubs’ safety. After they went missing ,the park director led a team of over 100 tiger trackers to trace the cubs . Forest guards and rangers were scanning the jungle patch where the tigress was located last before her death. More than 72 hours of hard work paid off and the cubs were sited . The tiger family was located in a thick jungle patch with a very difficult terrain. Though P243, the male tiger, looked dejected after the death of his mate, there was hardly any change in the behavior of the cubs and they seemed to be enjoying their dad’s company, the jungle staff claimed. ” This scene left them wondering”, they said. Once they were sited, the cubs continued to be monitored by the field staff. .Besides, cameras have also been installed to monitor the family of the big cats round the clock.
Uncertainty over Tiger Future
Facing imminent threat from the Ken Betwa river link project, Panna tiger reserve has seen many ups and downs in the last one and half decade. There was a time when all the tigers had vanished from the park after extensive poaching of the big cats. In 2008 , there were no tigers left in the park. A successful tiger reintroduction programme brought the roar back in the emerald forests of Panna .
Also read: Future Tense: Turbulent Time Ahead for Panna Tigers
In November 2020, Panna tiger reserve was accorded the status of UNESCO’s biosphere. But the sword of Damocles of Ken Betwa River link was always dangling over the park. Last month, an agreement was signed by the state’s of UP and MP to build a dam inside the park to link the rivers of Ken and Betwa which will lead to the submergence of the best of the tiger habitant of the tiger reserve. So the fate of the father-cubs family and other big cats is also uncertain.
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