Ahead of the first anniversary of the controvertial cheetah project and the release of African cheetahs in Kuno national park , interesting observations have been shared by the director of the park where 14 cheetahs await re-release in the wild. They were caught and brought back to bomas following 6 cheetah deaths after septicemia caused by abrasion from satellite collars. Uttam Kumar Sharma , the park director has dwelt in detail on cheetah movements and their exploration of the landscape , their interaction with each other and the efforts made by the park management to monitor the animals round the clock as he tried to hammer home a point- African cheetahs are adapting fast in India. Asha: The Hope Based upon his observations, Sharma has released newsletters revolving around two cheetah coalitions -Gaurav-Shaurya (Rockstars) and Agni-Vayu (White walkers), Asha, the female cheetah from Namibia and Jwala and her Indian born cubs. The story of the two coali
Now a team of international scientists and biologists have questioned the “incomplete” cheetah action plan with an unscientific approach relying on “ decade-old flawed projections from Namibia”. Making a scathing attack on the translocation project of the iconic species in Kuno National Park , 8 scientists and conservationists write in an international journal that this may lead to “human –cheetah conflict. They “advised” to “prepare a revised science based” action plan. The Great Cheetah Divide The Cheetah Introduction Action Plan developed by the Wildlife Institute of India ( WII ) and the National Tiger Conservation Authority ( NTCA ) and of the Union ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFC&C). Many experts from Namibia and South Africa have supported the plan. As controversy followed the cheetah translocation in Kuno national park, 8 cheetahs were released by the prime minister of India Narendra Modi on his birthday on September 17 this year. The