Union Minister Bhupender Yadav on Wednesday announced that three cubs were born to Namibian cheetah Asha at Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh. "Purrs in the wild! Thrilled to share that Kuno National Park has welcomed three new members. The cubs have been born to Namibian Cheetah Aasha," Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav said on social media platform X. He termed the development "a roaring success for Project Cheetah, envisioned by PM Narendra Modi to restore ecological balance".
"My big congrats to all experts involved in the project, the Kuno wildlife officials, and wildlife enthusiasts across India," Yadav said in the post.
4th cheetah released into wild
One more African cheetah was moved out of an enclosure and released into the wild at the Kuno National Park (KNP) in Madhya Pradesh's Sheopur district on Thursday, an official said, taking the number of such big cats to four and allowing tourists to get a glimpse of them more than a year after their translocation. The male cheetah, Pavan, brought from Namibia in September last year, was released in the KNP's Nayagaon area which falls under the Peepalbaodi tourist zone, he said.
Now, tourists visiting the KNP can get a glimpse of Pavan and three other cheetahs already released into the wild, the official said. Earlier, all 15 surviving cheetahs (seven males, as many females and a cub) at the KNP were kept in bomas (enclosures) since August this year for monitoring of their health parameters by a team of veterinarians. Six adult cheetahs and three cubs have died so far due to various reasons.
Female cheetah 'Veera' was released into the wild in the Nayagaon forest range on Wednesday (December 20), a release issued by the chief conservator of forest (tiger project) stated.
