Project Cheetah Four-Year Review: India Has 52 Cheetahs
Why in the news
Kuno National Park released a status review after four years of Project Cheetah, and the programme has moved into its consolidation phase.
Key facts
- Start: 17 September 2022 at Kuno; 12 more arrived from South Africa in February 2023.
- Landmark: world’s first intercontinental large carnivore translocation.
- Sites: Kuno (Sheopur district) and Gandhi Sagar (Mandsaur-Neemuch), both in Madhya Pradesh.
| Site (Madhya Pradesh) | Cheetahs |
|---|---|
| Kuno National Park | 49 |
| Gandhi Sagar | 3 |
| Total | 52 |
About the cheetah
- Acinonyx jubatus, family Felidae; sole living member of its genus; fastest land animal.
- IUCN: Vulnerable; Asiatic subspecies Critically Endangered. CITES: Appendix I.
- Declared extinct in India in 1952; the only large carnivore lost after independence.
Exam angle
- Split: 49 Kuno + 3 Gandhi Sagar.
- Extinct in India: 1952.
- Genus: Acinonyx.