Multiple cheetah deaths in Kuno raise questions about habitat limits, prey scarcity, and management. A data-driven look at the challenges facing India’s cheetah project T wo back-to-back cheetah deaths—one from a suspected collision inside the forest and another caused by a speeding vehicle—have once again pushed the spotlight onto the ambitious yet troubled cheetah introduction project in Kuno National Park . While officials have issued preliminary statements, the absence of publicly released post-mortem and investigation reports related to the past such cases has deepened concerns about transparency at a time when clarity is essential. The recent incidents highlight the ecological and management challenges that continue to shape the project’s uncertain trajectory. Each Loss Is Significant Setback On December 5, Friday, one of Veera’s cubs recently released into the open forest, died after reportedly separating from its mother. Just two days later, on December 7, another young cheetah...
It is always disheartening to carry a picture of a dead tiger . This young tiger was killed by poachers near Panna tiger reserve . About four days after the death, body of this male tiger was found hanging from a tree from a clutch wire- used in motor bikes. The picture gives an impression as if the tiger committed suicide. This is the second such incident in the region. Around four years ago, the body of a tiger was found hanging from a tree in the core area of the tiger reserve.
Poachers Are Active
On the cold December morning on Wednesday, the forest department officials in Panna and Chattarpur received a message of the tiger's death. As the investigations started by afternoon on December 7, officials of the Special Task Force, the Tiger Strike Force and local police arrived at the scene. Sniffer dogs were deployed . We will update the story whenever some development take place. The crime scene is located in a village Vikrampur ,8 kms away from Panna city and about 20 kms away from the tiger reserve. Chief Conservator of Forest (CCF) Chattarpur , Sanjeev Jha said, “ poachers wanted to kill some other animal but the tiger was caught in the noose”. The poaching took place in Panna North division where the post of the divisional forest officer (DFO) has been vacant for the past over three months .Sources said that there was hardly any patrolling taking place in the forest area. The CCF said ,” we will take lessons from this incident and will step up patrolling.”
There is a history of tiger poaching in and around Panna tiger reserve. For the poachers, winters have always been the time to strike in jungles. It has been seen in the past that most of the time when a tiger steps out of the tiger reserve, it has not survived. Large numbers of poachers are active in the jungle around the national park that had witnessed a huge tragedy of tigers when all of them were poached and no tiger was left in the national park. This male tiger had also strayed out from the park, department sources said, after he was separated from his mother. “Over two year of age, the young tiger was creating his territory when the tragedy struck “, sources claimed. “ Even if the poachers did not want to kill a tiger”, a senior officer said, “ the clutch wire noose was placed to kill some animal which is illegal.” There are around 70 tigers in Panna national park. About three years ago when a tiger was killed in core area of Panna, it had a radio collar around his neck.
By Deshdeep Saxena
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