India's Ambitious Cheetah Reintroduction Project Faces Key Milestones and Challenges

India is awaiting Kenya's approval to finalize a Memorandum of Understanding for importing cheetahs to establish a breeding center in Gujarat's Bunni grasslands. This forms part of a larger initiative involving the translocation of cheetahs from various African nations. Challenges, including animal mortality and prey scarcity in designated parks, persist.

India is on the brink of finalizing a crucial Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Kenya to import cheetahs for a new breeding center in Gujarat's Bunni grasslands, according to senior officials.

This move is an extension of India's ambitious project to reintroduce cheetahs, which has already seen the first-ever intercontinental translocation of the big cats, including 20 cheetahs brought to Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park from Namibia and South Africa.

Despite the progress, the project encounters challenges, such as the mortality of several adult cheetahs and prey scarcity in the designated parks. Efforts to manage these issues are ongoing as the initiative marks its two-year anniversary.

(With inputs from agencies.)